The Angel of Light
by Ghost Whisper
Summary: A desperate Yugi places a card he didn't know he had down while dueling Pegasus. Yugi's wish ends up calling...Sailor Cosmos. But what is the connection between Serena's battle with Chaos, and the Millenium Items? SMYu-Gi-Oh
1. Chapter 1: Summons

Disclaimer: I do not own either Sailor Moon or Yu-Gi-Oh. All credit for characters of Sailor Moon go to Naoko Takeuchi, and the companies who produced it. Credit for Yu-Gi-Oh goes also to the person who wrote it and produced it. This story was written for entertainment only, and receives no profit whatsoever.  
  
  
  
  
  
This story has been written by Silver Angel. Please do not steal the idea!  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
The Angel Of Light  
  
Yugi's eyesight was blurred and his knees weak with only the effort of trying to stand. He had been trapped within the shadow realm until the duel was finished. Both players had used their strongest cards, but still, it seemed as if Yugi was doomed to lose this most important of duels.  
  
"It's not over yet Pegasus," he gasped, drawing another card. He looked down at the card he had drawn. How could this have gotten into his deck? It was a blank card, with no picture, and not stats displayed on its surface.  
  
'I'm sure that this wasn't in my deck before,' he thought. 'It has to do something though.' Worry filled his mind, and he debated over what move to take, but he knew he couldn't wait much longer. His strength was waning fast, and he had to make his move now. Wasn't he always telling himself to trust in the heart of the cards? It had to have shown up for a reason. Besides, if he didn't know what it did, than Pegasus wouldn't either, and wouldn't be able to counter it.  
  
His vision darkened as he placed the card on the field face down. 'Please let this work' he pleaded silently, 'I - I have to save Grandpa, and Kaiba, and Mokuba. all their souls are counting on me.' He slipped into unconsciousness, hanging onto that thought.  
  
The Millennium Puzzle glowed, and Yami stepped in to take Yugi's place. He looked down at the card Yugi had placed during his last turn. 'He shouldn't have done it.' Frustration and worry colored his thoughts. Yugi had used what must have been the last of his energy to place that card down. Now- now Yami couldn't even feel his presence in the body that they shared.  
  
There was something about that card though. He didn't know what it could be, but it seemed to give off a faint silver shimmer. Yugi had placed it as a monster card. and in attack mode too. Pegasus hadn't bothered to attack it, being so confident that he would win. He probably had wanted it to attack, so that he could stop it with a magic card or maybe a trap card of some sort. There was no telling what he had up his sleeve. Even more likely was that he wanted to use his Thousand Eyes Idol and bring it under his control, thus humiliating Yugi even more.  
  
Yami's eyes narrowed. Yugi must have had a lot of faith in this card. Even stranger, he felt that attacking with this card could win the entire duel for him. 'How could this be?' he wondered. The card seemed to be giving off an aura of some sort, and as much as he might try to deny it; there was something familiar about that power signature.  
  
'If only I had more of my memories from the past,' he thought with a mental sigh. Trusting instincts, and Yugi's faith, Yami flipped over the card, his eyes widening slightly as he looked at a card that had never been seen before, not even in the shadow games of Ancient Egypt.  
  
"I play. the Angel of Light," he yelled.  
  
The creature that appeared on the battlefield was a woman - or at least looked like one. She had silver hair tied up into heart shaped buns on each side of her head, with hair streaming down from each that came down to the ground. She wore a white skirt, which fell halfway to her knees, and had a rainbow colored band around the hem. She also had on a white no sleeved bodysuit with a broach bearing an eight-pointed star and tiny white wings on the sides centered on her chest. Her white high-heeled boots came up to her knees, and had a band of silver at the top. On her forehead was the same eight-pointed star symbol that adorned her broach. Finally, on her back was a pair of large white wings.  
  
'That must be why she's called an angel,' Yami thought, slightly bemused at the sight of the creature that he the King of Games had never seen before.  
  
'I am Cosmos, the guardian of the universe, called the Angel of Light'  
  
Yami gasped. This creature - Cosmos - she had spoken in his mind! Even the monsters summoned in the shadow games hadn't done that! In fact, none of the monster had ever spoken to a human being, though he had sometimes fancied that he could feel their emotions. The Dark Magician always seemed to give off a warm feeling when he summoned him; but never had he heard actual speech.  
  
Cosmos turned and looked at Yami. She gazed at him with cold, appraising eyes. 'You have summoned me to deal with one who steals and imprisons souls.' She turned to face Pegasus, her eyes narrowing in anger. 'Evil such as this cannot be tolerated.' At that moment, it seemed almost as if she were looking through Pegasus. A glimmer of recognition showed in her eyes, and she began to glow with an eerie silver light.  
  
This time speaking out loud, her voice seemed to reverberate through the shadow realm. "Fragment of Chaos, begone! Celestial.Starlight.Blast!"  
  
With those three shouted words, a ball of silver light appeared above her upraised hands. Bringing her hands down in front of her chest, the silver energy shot towards Pegasus, engulfing him in the purifying light. A shrill scream of anger and pain was heard. A dark shadow flitted away, and when the light faded, Pegasus crumpled unconscious to the floor of the stadium, which had reappeared. It was as if the purity of the light had banished the shadow realm.  
  
"You are not the one who summoned me," Cosmos stated. "You look the same, however I can feel the difference. Both of you have pure hearts," she told him, "Though yours has lost it's innocence. Another fragment of Chaos exists in this world. I must remain until it has been destroyed. I shall stay with you, as you and the other soul within that body are the ones who brought me here."  
  
She looked down at herself, critically examining the fuku she wore. "I cannot stay in this form," she told him. "It uses too much of my energy, and attracts my enemies." With that simple statement, a column of light shot up around her form. When the glow encasing her faded away, a new person stood before him.  
  
The new girl was about 16 years old, although she was probably no more than five feet tall or so. Her long golden hair was done up similarly to Cosmos', but the buns were rounded rather than heart shaped, and the hair streaming down only came to the backs of her knees. Most strikingly, a crescent moon with the points turned upward glowed on her forehead.  
  
After a moment, the crescent moon faded, and the girls' form swayed and began to fall. Yami caught the new girl just before she could hit the ground; he looked up as Tea, Joey, and Tristan rushed over to see if he was okay.  
  
"Yugi! Are you okay?" Tea asked, as she moved quickly to his side. "What happened to Pegasus and the black dome? And who's she?"  
  
"Her name is Cosmos," Yami responded. "She was a creature summoned for our Duel Monsters game in the shadow realm. Other than that, I know nothing about her, or why she's still here." Yami's frown showed his concern.  
  
"Yugi placed her card down on the field, and I summoned her, however, I have never heard of a creature such as her before. From what I could tell, she seemed more powerful than Exodia, and in the Duel Monsters game and shadow games alike her is unstoppable."  
  
Tea's eyes widened at his unexpected statement, and a strange look crossed her face as she realized that he had spoken about Yugi as a different person. "You're not Yugi - are you?" she asked him. "You're the other."  
  
"Soul" Yami finished for her, as she hesitated. "I am the spirit which resides in Yugi's Millennium puzzle" he told the trio, fingering the gold pyramid with the eye symbol that he wore around his neck.  
  
"I knew it! I knew that there were somehow two Yugi's!" Tea exclaimed, while Joey and Tristan stood in the background, amazed looks on their faces.  
  
"You - you mean you're not really Yugi?" Joey asked him. Joey's eyes narrowed suddenly. "Then what did you do to 'Yug'? If you hurt him"  
  
"I've done nothing to Yugi which he hasn't allowed me to do." Yami told the angry young man.  
  
"Wait." Tea broke in. "You only come out when Yugi's dueling right?" Yami nodded. "So then why are you still here? Shouldn't you have disappeared, or whatever it is you do when you beat Pegasus?"  
  
"Yes," Yami told her. "I should have, except for one thing."  
  
"And that is?" Tristan interrupted, not wanting to be left out.  
  
"The shadow realm. That is what the black dome you saw was. Pegasus decided he wanted the duel to be more interesting, so he summoned a part of the shadow realm to the arena. In order to block Pegasus' mind reading abilities, Yugi and I had to constantly shuffle our minds back and forth at each turn. Yugi insisted on playing monster cards on his turn."  
  
"Why's that bad?" Joey asked.  
  
"The special effect of the shadow realm is that it links the players life force to that of the monsters they summon. Each time you summon a creature, it drains some of your energy. I have the energy and the power to sustain that sort of drain. I do not think Yugi does. or did. I haven't been able to feel Yugi since he placed Cosmos in play. I was able to take the strain of summoning her, but just placing her on the field may have cost Yugi more energy than he could spare. I fear. we may have lost him."  
  
"No you haven't," a new voice joined the conversation. Everyone looked up to find that the girl had awakened. "He is still there, although his spirit has been weakened greatly," the girl told them. The group all breathed a sigh of relief, even Yami, who was not prone to showing his emotions.  
  
"So when will he. recover?" Tea asked.  
  
"I can bring him back right now if you want. He is only drifting because of a lack of energy. I can heal him."  
  
"You have healing powers?" Yami asked.  
  
"In a manner of speaking" she replied. With that, she cupped her hands in front of her chest, forming a small hollow between them. A look of concentration appeared on her face, and the crescent moon symbol flashed into life on her forehead. A silvery golden aura glowed around her, and moments later, a silver crystal formed in the hollow between her hands.  
  
"This is the Imperium Silver crystal," she told them. Her voice had taken on a strange echoing quality. "With it, I can use my energy to heal people. When I heal him, his soul will take its place in his body, so you may want to explain things to him before you switch." Yami nodded, agreeing. Holding the crystal in one hand, she reached out the other hand, and placed it over his heart.  
  
"Silver Crystal Healing Power" she whispered. The silver crystal flashed, and seconds after, Yugi's Millennium Puzzle glowed. His eyes, which had closed during the whole process, flickered open, displaying an innocence, which had not been there previously.  
  
"So." he said, giving a wan smile. "Yami's managed to tell me a little bit about what's gone on since I blacked out, but I still have a lot of questions."  
  
She smiled at Yugi; a smile that was so innocent, it seemed at odds with the serious expression that had previously been on her face and Yugi's transferred memories of how she had fought in the shadow realm.  
  
"I'm sure," she told him. "I know I would too if I were in your position.  
  
"Maybe you could start by explaining who you are miss Cosmos." Yugi said.  
  
"Call me Serena" she told him, smiling. "That is my name in my normal form after all. As to who I am, well to put it simply, I guess you could say that I am the protector of the Cosmos. When I was younger, myself, and a group of friends called the Sailor Scouts protected our world from evil monsters that came to destroy it." A strange look crossed her face, as if she were pushing back old sorrow.  
  
"Our last battle was against a foe known as Chaos. Chaos had taken control of the body of one of the most powerful scouts, Galaxia, and had come to Earth to steal star seeds - the essence of one's soul. Before I was able to defeat him, all of my friends were killed by having their star seeds removed. Galaxia attempted to absorb them, but before she could, they flew to me, causing me to transform form Sailor Moon, which had been my previous form, into Sailor Cosmos. In my new form I was able to defeat him, but. I wish I could have found another way. One without the loss of my friends." Serena's eyes glimmered with unshed tears.  
  
Yugi felt sorry for the girl. Saving her planet, but at the loss of all of her friends. Something she had said was bothering him though, "You said 'when you were younger," Yugi stated. "How long ago was this?"  
  
Serena looked thoughtful for a moment. "I think - about 400 years" she said, almost as if she hadn't really thought about it in all that time.  
  
"Four hundred years!" Joey yelled, looking about ready to fall over in shock.  
  
"That's impossible! No one lives that long"  
  
Serena looked slightly wistful. "A Lunarian does. Even as Sailor Moon, I would probably have lived several thousand years if I never died of causes other than age. Cosmos, though, is my ultimate form. As her, time does not even effect me. Because I now have within me the powers of Sailor Pluto, who as the Guardian of Time never aged."  
  
"Four hundred years," Yugi looked slightly dazed. "But why did you come?"  
  
"I came because you called me," Serena told Yugi. "As you placed that blank card down, I heard you plea, and your want to save the souls of your friends. I know what that feels like. You also drew my attention to the fragments of Chaos, which had found their way here. When I felt them, I knew I had to come and destroy them before your world ceased to exist."  
  
"Cease to exist? Why would our world cease to exist?" Yugi nearly shouted. He looked shocked, and now worried. Serena however appeared calm as she answered, though Yugi thought he saw a flicker of worry in the back of her eyes.  
  
"The fragments of Chaos that I spoke of earlier. They have no real mind of their own. Their only purpose is to destroy. They seem to be using the Millennium items as a way to enter and control a person; twisting their minds so that they seek to capture souls, just like the original Chaos did." Serena's gaze hardened. "I will not let them. I will not let any more people be harmed by this monster." Suddenly she looked up, a slightly pleased look on her face. "The other two in the castle whose souls had been captured have woken up - as well as your Grandfather Yugi, though he is some distance away."  
  
A grin appeared on Yugi's face. "Grandpa is back to normal? And Kaiba and Mokuba are awake too? That's great!"  
  
Serena smiled, glad that her new friend was happy. She had not had a real friend in so long, and she felt that Yugi really could be one of her friends, as well as the others: Tea, Joey, Tristan - maybe even the spirit that shared Yugi's body, whom they called Yami.  
  
"Serena." Tristan began. Serena turned her had to look at the brown haired young man, who had been the quietest of all Yugi's companions.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"You said that these fragments of Chaos worked through the Millenium items right?" Tristan had a slightly nervous look in his eyes.  
  
"I believe so," she replied, nodding her head. "The items had already been imbued with magical properties. The probably made them more receptive to Chaos when it came."  
  
"Well if that's true, then why had nothing happened t Yugi? He owns the Millennium Puzzle." Before she could answer, Tristan spoke up once more.  
  
"And, well. what about another of our friends: Bakura? You haven't met him yet, but his is the owner of the Millennium Ring, and her sure was acting strangely earlier. I saw him bring some of the spells and creatures on the Duel Monsters cards to life!"  
  
  
  
A.N. So what did you think? This is part one of the story. E-mail me with your reviews, and if you have any really good ideas that you want to share. I'll try to get the next part out as soon as I can get something of a decent length. ^_^  
  
  
  
To those who have been reading this story, I hope to have chapter 10 out soon. I have been busy with other fanfics, and school, and my attention diverted. Sorry to make anyone wait. 


	2. Chapter 2: Awakenings

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Sailor Moon or Yu-Gi-Oh characters featured in this fan fiction. Credit for Sailor Moon characters and plot goes to Naoko Takeuchi, and the people who produced the Sailor Moon show. Credit for Yu-Gi-Oh characters and plot goes to the creator and producers who made that show. This story was written for fun only.  
  
  
  
  
  
A.N. '.' Means thoughts, and italics are Yugi talking to Yami in his mind. I tried to stay in character as much as possible. Deviations are author's prerogative, so don't bug me!   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
The Angel of Light: Part Two  
  
  
  
Serena turned her head sharply to look at Tristan, a serious expression on her face. "He brought the spells and creatures on the cards to life? That is definitely not good. The fragment of chaos that.took residence in his ring must be more powerful than the other. Pegasus may have been able to seal souls and read minds by manipulating his Millennium Eye, but even he could not create monsters." She was worried. Yugi could tell, even though she hid it well.  
  
"Yugi!" Everyone turned around to the source of the shout. Mokuba's head appeared over the edge of the railing, with Kaiba standing beside him, his usual stony expression on his face. "Mokuba! Kaiba!" Banishing his thoughts of trouble for a moment, Yugi smiled, glad to see the Kaiba brothers awake again. You might want to tell them about what's been going on. Yami spoke in his head. Kaiba may dislike you, but even he will not want an evil like Chaos around; especially if it is a threat to his brother.' 'Your right' Yugi told him. "Come on down here you guys! There's something that you really need to hear." Kaiba looked as if he would rather leave the castle, but Yugi could hear Mokuba persuading his brother to come down. "At the very least, Yugi can tell you what happened," they heard him say. His death glare still on his face, Kaiba reluctantly followed Mokuba down the stairs and over to where Yugi's group was waiting. "So Yugi, who's your new friend, and how did you defeat Pegasus?" Kaiba asked, without waiting or thanking him for saving his brother.  
  
Pegasus groaned as pain lanced through his head. A memory tickled at the back of his mind. Everything seemed kind of hazy. He didn't really remember anything very well since his trip to Egypt. He had been searching for something to bring his love back to him: a magic he had heard about. He had found it: the Millennium eye. That was where things got confusing.  
  
He had started to have strange blank outs, and the rest of the time everything was kind of fuzzy; as if he were only half there. Several faces stuck in his mind, which, with a little thought, he was able to put names to. A brown haired boy with a scowl on his face who he remembered as Kaiba, and a younger boy with long black hair who he believed was named Mokuba, and was related to Kaiba. The angry way the boy looked at him in his half there memories suggested that relations between them were. strained to say the least. Then there was the blond/red haired boy. In his memories, it seemed almost as if there were two of them. He didn't think they were really friends either, but he wasn't sure. The duel memories he had of the boy made things even more unclear than they already were. The only other face in his mind almost made him decide that he was dreaming. It was the face of an angel. The only one who could compare was his wife, yet the two were completely different. His wife's face and eyes had shone with innocence and happiness, this other girl, this angel, had eyes which shone with the pain of innocence lost and loneliness. He couldn't help feeling sorry for her, a woman to be sure, but one who had grown up all too soon. She had long silver hair done up in odd looking pigtails, and in the one memory he had of her, she was shouting at him with anger in her eyes, though he almost believed he saw pity as well. Pegasus shook his head. She couldn't know of his loss, or even understand it, so why should she pity him? His memories began to clear, and he remembered some of the things that he had done since getting the Millennium eye. Surely he hadn't done anything to deserve pity? If anything, he would expect to see loathing and disgust in her eyes when she looked at him. Not that it mattered now. Although some of his memories had returned, things still seemed slightly unreal, and he wasn't completely sure that this angel girl existed. He pushed himself out of the bed that one of his servants must have placed him in. After beginning the duel with that blond haired boy - Yugi? - he couldn't remember anything at all. This was one of the complete blank outs he had been having. Perhaps that strange silver haired girl really did exist? Maybe Yugi would know who she was. It didn't really matter in any case. He had to find her. There was something about her. as if she would be the one who would hold the key to helping him get his wife back. Pegasus made his way to the door, supporting himself on the wall. For some reason, he felt strangely weak, as if something had sapped all of his strength. What had happened to him anyway? Had he become ill? Maybe collapsed? That would explain the weakness he felt. He made his way down to the dueling arena. Hopefully at least one of the people he remembered would still be there to answer his questions.  
  
Kaiba didn't believe a word of what Yugi was telling him. The shadow realm? It sounded like something out of a video game. That was what he tried to tell himself anyway, as he brushed off the unclear memories of what had happened after his defeat at the hands of Pegasus. Pegasus holding up a blank card, saying the price of his loss was his soul; the Millennium eye glowing brightly, and then darkness; nothing more until waking up next to Mokuba above the dueling arena with a painful headache. He knew that Pegasus had done something to him. If what Yugi was saying about his grandpa's soul being trapped in a card was true, as were his memories, than as much as he wanted to disbelieve it, than that was probably what had happened. Still, it got to him that he had been so helpless against Pegasus, and even more that Yugi had been able to do what he couldn't. Yugi had been the one to defeat Pegasus and save his brother.  
  
It wasn't really like he hated Yugi. As a matter of fact, he respected his dueling abilities. He did hold a grudge still from their first match however, and he didn't like the fact that Yugi always seemed to beat him in some way. Him being the one to defeat Pegasus was just another in a list of reasons to be jealous - if one could call it that. "Assuming you're telling the truth about this 'shadow realm' and Pegasus' mind reading abilities Yugi, it makes it even less likely that you would beat him. He already had the advantage of knowing all your cards. So what did you do to turn the tables?" Yugi glanced over at the blond haired girl who had joined Yugi's party as if asking her a question. The slight nod she gave him answered an affirmative to his unspoken question. "Well actually Kaiba I'm not the one who actually defeated Pegasus. It was Serena who actually did that." "So her name's Serena then," He gazed at the blond, who had a small smile on her face. "And how do you expect me to believe that she's the one who defeated Pegasus?" Without waiting for Yugi to answer, Serena cut in. "Because Seto Kaiba, Duel Monsters are not enough to defeat someone with magic." "And you're telling me that you can use magic?" Kaiba's tone was sarcastic. "You really expect me too believe that? How stupid do you think I am?" "Why do you insist on not trusting others Kaiba?" Serena asked him, as if she knew everything about him. "Sooner or later you are going to have to trust someone. You will have no choice." Though her voice was gentle, there was a hint of steel in her voice which made it sound as if she knew exactly what she were talking about. "I've had enough of this," Kaiba told her. "Come on Mokuba, we're leaving." He turned his back on them and started to walk away. "But." Mokuba began to protest. With a quick glance at his brother, he shut his mouth and began to follow him instead.  
  
"Well that went well" Joey commented sarcastically, as he turned to watch the Kaiba brothers exit the arena. "Be quiet Joey!" Tea told him, smacking over the head. "It's not Serena's fault that Kaiba wouldn't listen. He's not exactly the trusting type you know." Joey held his 'wounded' head, backing away from Tea. "Ouch! Hey, I know that! I just wish that I could go and drag him back here, you know? That guys attitude always gets on my nerves, even when he's not coming straight out and telling one of my friends that they're lying." "Don't worry," Serena told Yugi. "Seto Kaiba will come to his senses." Her knowing smile seemed out of place on her. She seemed to be only sixteen or so, and was barely taller than Yugi. The knowledge that lay in her eyes contradicted her appearance. 'What must it be like to live as long as she has?' he wondered. 'To live that long with all you're friends gone. I don't think I could stand that.' Serena looked at him as if she could read his mind. "He does not want to listen because he is caught up in his thoughts of how he should have been able to save Mokuba. He doesn't want to admit that he could possibly be anything close to a friend with you." "Kaiba, a friend of Yugi's? Now that's a weird thought. I don't think he's friends with anybody except his brother. Are you sure about that Serena?" There was a slight smirk on Joey's face, telling what he thought of the idea of Kaiba being Yugi's friend. Serena just gave Joey a 'look' that told him to stop being sarcastic 'or else'. Seeing the small blond girl glare at his friend, Yugi hastily cut in before she could whack him with something. "It doesn't matter Joey. Either Kaiba decides to help us, or he doesn't. In any case, we're going to have to figure out what to do about the other Millennium Items. These fragments of chaos that are in them could be serious trouble. Imagine what could have happened if Pegasus had been able to bring the monsters on his cards to life!" "Yeah," Tristan added. "The only lucky break we've had is that even though Bakura had a good deck, it wasn't as powerful as Yugi's, or some others that we've seen. We'd be in serious trouble otherwise. This whole idea of being able to bring duel monsters to life definitely creeps me out. Especially with Bakura having gone all whacko all the sudden." Yugi looked slightly uncomfortable. "Actually Tristan, it wasn't exactly all the sudden. Remember the time we first met up with Bakura in the forest? Well he was already acting strangely then." Tea looked at Yugi with dawning understanding. "You mean that weird dream we all had - about becoming our favorite duel monsters cards - it wasn't a dream?" Giving a weak smile, Yugi admitted. "No, that actually happened. The um. evil spirit in Bakura's Millennium Ring trapped our souls in the cards, and he made Yami duel with us in the shadow realm." "Aw man!" Joey whined. "We just finish dealing with Pegasus and that Millennium Eye of his, and now we have to deal with another person trying to kill us or steal our souls or whatever it is Bakura wants to do!" A slight shuffling noise suddenly caught their attention, and caused Joey to break off his complaints. Staggering slightly into the room and using the door for support was Maximillion Pegasus.  
  
  
  
A.N. Hey people! I finally finished this chapter. I bet I kept you waiting a long time huh? Sorry about that. I had a bad case of writers block for a while, and this was more of a development chapter anyway. I wanted to introduce more what was happening with the story; so for you action lovers out there, Gomen ^_^; Anyways, I'll try to get another chapter up, but suggestions are always welcome.  
  
Silver Angel- ::runs off carrying Yugi plushie:: "I got Yugi! Mwaa haa haa! But I'll share, if you read and review." ^_^ 


	3. Chapter 3: My pain, My loss, My heart

A.N. To all you people out there, thank you sooo much for reviewing! It really encourages me to keep writing, and to improve my skills when you review. I was actually very surprised at the number of reviews I got so quickly. Once again lots of thanks from me.  
  
Yugi: And me too! I want to find out what happens with Serena. Who are you gonna pair her up with?  
  
Silver Angel: Hey Yugi. Well as to who Serena will be paired with.  
  
.It's a secret! But don't worry, it will happen. Maybe some votes?  
  
Serena/Yami Serena/Yugi Serena/Bakura (the nice one) Serena/Pegasus  
  
I make no promises, but your opinions are very welcome. Oh and Yugi here has something to say. ^_^  
  
Yugi: Silver does not own me, or any of the other characters from Yu-Gi- Oh! She also does not own Serena or Sailor Moon; they belong to Naoko Takeuchi, and Silver makes no profit at all on this.  
  
Silver Angel: I claim my Yugi plushie though! ::huggles:: On with the story!   
  
  
  
Chapter 3: My pain, My loss, My heart.  
  
  
  
Remember  
  
Remember me when I am gone away, Gone far away into the silent land; When you can no more hold me by the hand, Nor I half turn to go, yet turning stay. Remember me when no more, day by day, You tell me of our future that you planned: Only remember me; you understand It will be late to counsel then or pray. Yet if you should forget me for a while And afterwards remember, do not grieve: For if the darkness and corruption leave A vestige of the thoughts that I once had, Better by far you should forget and smile Than that you should remember and be sad.  
  
-Christina Rossetti  
  
Leaning on it with almost all of his weight, Pegasus staggered into the doorway. His face was extremely pale, and it was obvious that he was sweating with the excertion. Dark circles hung under his eyes, a testament to the pain he must have gone through, and the weakness of his body.  
  
'Wow. I didn't think that Pegasus would really look this bad.' Yugi silently appraised. 'I can't say I blame him though. Knowing what happened to him, I think I would look the same. Being possessed by an evil spirit can not be good for you.'  
  
Seeing the Millennium eye still in place, Yugi frowned, though inwardly he heaved a great sigh of relief. Though Pegasus still had possession of the talisman, he could tell that it was different. The gold seemed to have lost some of it shine, and now had a lackluster sort of glint to it. It was the only visible change, but the greatest different of all, was that the eye no longer seemed to exude such an all-pervasive feeling of evil. Coming back to himself with a start, Yugi noticed that Pegasus had started to collapse, falling forward away from the wall to land on his knees before them.  
  
Without saying a word to any of them, Serena walked forward, quickly closing the gap between her and the silver haired man. Kneeling down beside him, she lifted one delicate seeming hand, and placed it gently on his forehead. She breathed a single word, so quiet that none but Pegasus could possibly have heard, and surrounded their two bodies with a warm silver glow.  
  
Pegasus looked up when a strange warm glow seemed to fill him; replacing much of the energy he had used up trying to drag himself down to the dueling arena.  
  
'It's her. The angel. The one who saved me from the evil in the eye. She looks different; younger now, but I know it's her.' Gazing up at the delicate beauty of her face, her pale creamy skin and pale coral lips; he found himself drawn into her crystal blue eyes; so filled with emotions.  
  
'I was right.about the heartache I saw in her eyes. She has lost someone dear to her - just like me. Perhaps.perhaps she truly can understand my pain; all that I've gone through. How I wish that she could return to me, but.I do not know how.' He started to ask her who she was, but before he could form the question, she looked away, breaking eye contact, and the rapport that had formed between them.  
  
The silver light faded, and he blinked, pushing himself off the floor to stand. "Thank you," he told her. "For healing me; both times".  
  
She smiled at him, though the smile didn't quite seem to reach her eyes. The emotions that he had found there: pain, loss, determination, all remained there, though she had masked them partially.  
  
"You're welcome Mr. Pegasus, though I do wish to ask you if you remember anything from before." A hint of coldness flickered into her eyes at the last statement, though he couldn't tell whether it was directed at him or not. He slumped, finding himself awash with the memories of all he had done - for it had been him, no matter how much he would like to convince himself otherwise.  
  
"I remember.all of it," he admitted, eyes downcast, with his silver hair sweeping downwards to hide his face. A pain shot through his heart as he thought of his dead wife.  
  
'What would she think of me now? The man who kidnapped children, stole the souls of others, and nearly killed some. All for her.but she would hate me now. Whether I managed to bring her back or not would not matter. She would never forgive me.'  
  
'He looks so sad. I think he really does regret his actions.' Yugi thought to himself, as he watched Pegasus answer Serena's question. He blushed slightly thinking of the girl he had summoned; the girl who had saved them all. Both of her 'forms' were beautiful, though in different ways.  
  
Cosmos, the silver haired goddess who had answered his wish, had an ageless sort of beauty. She was strong, and seemed cold, but he had seen the emotions trapped in the depths of her eyes, hidden by her own masks, and knew that she was far from uncaring. Still, she had an unreachable sort of beauty: like the moon, or the stars.  
  
Serena though.in a way she was almost the opposite of her other form. She appeared younger, almost his own age in fact; and her eyes fairly danced with all her emotions. Hidden still, but much closer.  
  
Yugi blushed again. 'I really shouldn't be thinking of her like this. She's what? Three hundred years old? I do not have a crush on her. I do not have a crush on her.' He repeated this to himself like a mantra, trying to convince himself of its truth.  
  
/So you think she's pretty aibou?/ Yami's thought popped into his head. /I can't say I blame you, but I do warn you: she probably won't have the same feelings. You know her age, and there seems to be something familiar about her. I feel as though I have known her before, but she seems different. More dangerous certainly. Be careful around her./  
  
'Of course I'll be careful Yami,' Yugi thought back at his counterpart. 'But I really don't think we have anything to worry from her. She helped defeat Pegasus, and you yourself said you think you knew her somewhere. Surely you would remember if she had been evil.'  
  
Yami was silent at his last comment, and Yugi was unsure whether he agreed, or did not see fit to argue further.  
  
".so you'll let us use your helicopter to get off this island?" Serena was saying. She seemed to have finished interrogating Pegasus on all he knew of the Millennium items, and was making arrangements to track down the rest of them.  
  
"I'll do better than that miss Serena." He told her, giving her a small half smile. "I am coming with you. This eye of mine," he tapped the side of his head. "Still has the power to read minds, if I am not mistaken, and hopefully I may be of service in helping you with your goals." His smile gave way to a serious frown. "Besides all that, it is one way I can think of for making up for all the harm I've caused, and to repay you for all you've done for me."  
  
"If you want to than I will be glad for the help. I can defeat the Chaos easily enough, but the more minds I have helping me, the easier it will be to track down the different items. The longer it takes, the more souls that will be stolen, and the more powerful Chaos will become. I must not let it become anywhere near as powerful as it was the last time I faced it."  
  
At the mention of her last fight against Chaos, Serena's eyes once more filled with the shadows of her pain. She quickly covered this up with false happiness.  
  
"Well guys, are we ready to go? I don't know about you, but I think we should get started. The sooner we do this, the sooner we can have ice cream!" She jumped up, giving a little cheer. The rest of the group all sweat dropped. This was a side of her they hadn't seen before.  
  
On the helicopter, Yugi found himself sitting in the middle next to Pegasus, while Serena sat up front next to the pilot, and the rest of the group crowded into the large back seat. He glanced furtively to the side, at the man who had once been evil, and his worst enemy.  
  
"Pegasus?" The silver haired man turned to look at him questioningly, a true smile on his face. One that was quite unlike any he had seen previously on the man.  
  
"How did you get the Millennium eye in the first place? I mean, I got mine from my Grandpa, but I thought they were all pretty well hidden."  
  
The sadness Yugi had seen previously in Pegasus' eyes returned as he explained. "I was looking for it Yugi boy; or rather, I was looking for it's power. Did you know that if I had been able to gather enough souls, I may have found a way to bring someone back to life?" Yugi's eyes widened. Was this possible? /I do not know aibou/ his Yami answered unbidden. /He may be correct in this, though I have never heard of it occur. Many souls, or things akin to them dwell in the shadow realm. He may have found away to use the shadow realm to harness the power of those souls he trapped, to bring one back to him./  
  
"It was my wife, Yugi boy, who I was trying to return to me. My wife, who was stolen from me so soon after our wedding. I loved her with all my heart, yet we had so little time together. I went to Egypt, in hopes of finding a way to bring her back, and instead I found the one thing that would push her away, even if I could. I found the Millennium Eye Yugi, and I became a monster."  
  
Yugi looked down. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I shouldn't have asked. I don't even know if I can say I understand. I never even knew my parents when I lost them."  
  
Beside him, Pegasus sighed. "Don't trouble yourself over it Yugi. It is my loss to bear. My pain."  
  
  
  
A.N. Wow! I am so good! The chapter probably could have been longer, but I thought that here was a fitting ending. And I finished it in less than a day! I don't know how often this will happen, because Christmas vacation is almost over, but I'll try my best to update often. Don't forget to review!  
  
Yugi: Yeah! Review! I want to see if I get to be with Seren-Mmpff!  
  
Silver Angel: ::covers Yugi's mouth:: Heh! Don't mind him. ::holds back struggling Yugi:: He just has a little crush! ^_^;; 


	4. Chapter 4: A little help from the shadow...

Silver Angel: Hey minna! Silver here, wanting to thank all the nice people out there for their reviews. I feel so encouraged. A quick note, to say that so far, I have:  
  
6 votes for a Yami/Serena pairing. 1 vote for Bakura/Serena pairing If anyone else out there would like a specific couple, please let me know, and I will try my best.  
  
Yugi: Vote for me! Vote for me!  
  
Silver: Quiet Yugi! Now, as I was saying, votes are great, reviews are great-  
  
Yugi: I'm great!  
  
Silver: ::growls, and gives Yugi the Heero death glare. Looks up and smiles:: You reviewers are great too! I award all of you a complementary electronic Yugi plushie! On with the fic!  
  
  
  
Chapter 4: A little help from the shadows  
  
  
  
Fire and Ice  
  
Some say the world will end in fire,  
  
Some say in ice.  
  
From what I've tasted of desire  
  
I hold with those who favor fire.  
  
But if I had to perish twice,  
  
I think I know enough of hate  
  
To say that for destruction ice  
  
Is also great  
  
And would suffice.  
  
-Robert Frost  
  
Yugi was strangely quiet once they reached Domino city. The group had split up once the got back, to get 'supplies' and to check on things before they went anywhere. Joey had went to get some of his things, and to call Serenity to let her know that money was waiting in her bank account for her to have the operation she needed.  
  
Likewise, Tristan and Tea had also gone their separate ways to gather any belongings they might need, and to tell their parents where they would be going. The two had argued about that at first, saying they didn't want to worry their parents, but Serena had persuaded them otherwise.  
  
"After all," she had told them, "Your parents will worry more if you vanish without telling them anything. Take this from me. I know from experience." Reluctantly, they had left, brainstorming along the way about good excuses to tell their parents.  
  
Serena had disappeared, taking Pegasus with her, muttering about 'making some arrangements' and his Millennium eye. Yugi had wondered about that. What arrangements could Serena - by her own admission, not even from this world - hope to make with Pegasus or his company? And what did she plan to do with the Millennium eye?  
  
Yugi sighed, shaking his head as he walked down the sidewalk toward the hospital where his Grandpa was being kept. Serena had told him that his Grandpa had woken up, which was the best news he had heard in a long time.  
  
'It feels strange to be alone. I've spent so much time with my friends, almost always having one or another of them with me. They've helped me so much. Will I be able to help myself this time? Friendship is good - but am I becoming too dependent on my friends?  
  
/Don't even try to think it aibou/ his Yami commented in his head. /I'm always here, so you don't have to be alone. And as for becoming too dependent on your friends, well if anything, I think you're always trying to pull too much on yourself. Look what happened when we fought Pegasus in the shadow realm. I almost lost you Yugi! I wish you would let me take care of things more. I can't protect you if you insist on doing everything on your own./  
  
Yugi's eyes widened slightly as he listened to his Yami's fierce speech. So stunned was he by his other half's words, that he couldn't even break in to defend himself. He nearly walked into a nearby lamppost, he was so lost in these new words, and had to jerk himself back into awareness before he crashed.  
  
'Thank you Yami. Sorry about that. I guess you are right. All of us are stronger when we help each other. I of all people should know that I guess, considering the experiences I've had. I still can't help but feeling that I don't pull my own weight though - like I can never fight my own battles.'  
  
/Well don't think that way Hikari. I wouldn't be able to get along with out you, you know; and all of the others depend on you in some way or another./ His Yami's tone softened now.  
  
/In any case, I think it's time we ended this discussion. We've reached the hospital, and if I keep you distracted, your liable to walk into some patient, and not just a lamp post./  
  
Yugi chuckled quietly at the strange picture that presented itself to him, of him crashing into some poor patient wheeling an IV drip behind him, and a nurse clobbering him with the metal pole for injuring a patient.  
  
'You're right. That probably wouldn't be too good of an idea.'  
  
  
  
Serena was sitting in Pegasus' office, in a large soft navy blue chair, arms folded across her chest, but with a softness in her gaze that belied her posture. She pulled one her pigtails out in front of her, and absentmindedly began to comb through it with her fingers. Her voice was regretful when she finally spoke.  
  
"It wouldn't have worked you know," she told him softly.  
  
"No matter how many souls you gathered, it wouldn't have been enough to bring your wife back. You may have been able to bring her body back, but her soul was beyond your reach. Shadow powers cannot reach those souls that are pure. Not for that purpose anyway. All you would have gotten is a simulacrum. A semblance of your wife inhabited by the darkness of the Shadow Realm, or perhaps some evil spirit banished there.  
  
Pegasus looked back at her through anguished eyes. He sat across from her in a similar chair; this one upholstered in silver. "It wouldn't have worked than." He said quietly. A statement, not a question. The volume of his voice only served to further emphasize the intensity of his emotion. "I am doomed to live without the one I love."  
  
"No," Serena agreed. "It would not have worked, though there may be another way. I am not sure if it will work, but I can try." Standing up, she walked over to Pegasus, motioning him to stay seated.  
  
"What -" He broke off as she shushed him.  
  
"Before I go trying out any 'spells', or go haring off on a new quest, I want to check that Millennium eye of yours. I rid you of the fragment of Chaos inside, but some of its taint likely still remains. I should get rid of that, before it attracts any dark magic to it."  
  
Reaching out, she touched the golden talisman that had replaced his natural eye. "I was right," she muttered. With a small flash of silver light that left spots dancing in front of his eye, she cleansed the golden eye, causing it to become pleasantly warm before cooling once more.  
  
Serena stood up to go back to her chair, but paused as Pegasus grabbed her hand, stopping her from going any further.  
  
"Why are you doing this?" he asked her, searching for answers in her cerulean eyes.  
  
"Doing what?" she questioned. Something flickered in her eyes, almost a warning. A warning that she didn't really want to have to answer this.  
  
He didn't want to cause her pain. She reminded him of his wife in some way, though perhaps less carefree. Still. he had to know. He had to know the reason behind all that she had done for him. It was more than someone does for a stranger, even if that stranger as said they will help you with your mission.  
  
"Why are you helping me? You know what I am; what I have done; yet still you insist on helping me. You heal me, restore my energy; you even offer to help bring back my wife. I am a terrible person, but still you give me aid. Why?"  
  
The pain flickered back into her eyes, casting a shadow once more over the brightness contained there, and causing him to nearly regret his words.  
  
"Perhaps it's because I understand exactly how you feel. I had every single one of my friends, my love - my future daughter! - killed in front of me. They were all taken from me because I was not strong enough to act sooner." Tears filled her eyes now, unable to be hidden behind her many masks any longer.  
  
"The only way I was able to become strong enough to defeat the Chaos which is now affecting your world was to lose them forever. Irrevocably. Forever. Unlike you Pegasus, there is nothing left for me but to save others this pain. I cannot even be content with the fact that I will join them in death for I am immortal!"  
  
She was nearly shouting now, but restrained herself. Pulling herself upright, she banished all signs of momentary weakness, and brushed away any escaping tears. "Do not ask me this question again please." Her voice had sunk to a whisper. "I do not like to refresh the pain that I have lived with for three hundred years now."  
  
Pegasus nodded silently and stood up. "We should probably be leaving now."  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
'I'm so happy that Grandpa's awake again.' Yugi said to his Yami. 'It's too bad that the doctors wanted to keep him in the hospital for a few more days though. The game shop will just have to stay closed for a little while longer I guess."  
  
/It's probably for the best Yugi/ the spirit told him. /Your Grandfather is no longer a young man. Having his soul removed from his body could have had serious effects on him. It's safer if he's in the hospital anyway. And with this 'Chaos' on the loose, he's less likely to be attacked in the hospital than if her were all alone in the shop./  
  
'You're probably right about that Yami' Yugi agreed. "I wonder - "  
  
Whatever Yugi had been about to say was never heard, for at that moment, someone came out of the alley to his left. A familiar white haired teen, who would normally be his friend. This person however had several characteristics distinctly lacking in his friend. The malicious glint in his eyes for one, as well as the cruel sneer on his lips.  
  
"What do you want?" Yugi asked nervously. The whit haired teen only smirked and walked closer. Yugi backed up nervously against the wall, one hand fingering his Millennium Puzzle, the other on his Duel Monsters deck.  
  
"I should have thought that would be obvious Yugi - Or should I be calling you Pharaoh?" He smirked and pulled out a card, holding it so that Yugi could not see what it was. "I want your Millennium puzzle of course; and your soul."  
  
'Yami I think I'm going to need your help on this one.' He thought. 'You're the one with magic, not me.' "Yu-Gi-Oh!" At these words, Yami took over.  
  
"Well then Bakura; or Kage - What is it your calling yourself nowadays? I really do think your taking this multiple personality thing to far. Not only do you have the personality, but you have the names too!" Yami's taunts only served to the other angry, causing Yami Bakura to hold out the card he had drawn.  
  
"Come out Man Eater Bug! I have a Job for you!"  
  
Yami took a step back; eyes narrowing at the creature the other spirit had called forth. "I think it's time that you were beaten at your own game tomb robber!" He too held up a card, the identity facing him. "Dark Magician! I summon thee!"  
  
From the alleyway, a new form seemed to coalesce from the shadows. "You called me Master Yami?"  
  
  
  
Silver: Ooooh! I wrote a cliffy! It's so fun to do that. ^_^ Don't worry minna, I won't do that too often. I just couldn't help myself this time. It was the perfect place to leave off.  
  
Yugi: But what will happen to me? Bakura doesn't have any tricks up his sleeve does he? ::shudders:: I don't want to be eaten by that giant bug!  
  
Silver: Don't worry Yugi, I won't let anything happen to you. ::grins wickedly:: I might let him chase you a bit though.  
  
Yugi: But-  
  
Silver: Anyway minna, I have a plea for help here. I need to know about the names of the other Millennium items besides the ones I've mentioned so far in the story. I know Shadi has the Millennium Ankh, and I think the scales, but what are the names of the others.  
  
Also, I would like some background info on people like Malik, Yami Malik and Isis. I haven't seen many new Yu-Gi-Oh episodes, and know next nothing about them.  
  
Don't forget to Review me, and vote for couples if you want! ^_^ 


	5. Chapter 5: Strength of Innocence

Silver Angel: Okay minna here are the results in voting so far:  
  
Serena/Malik - 19  
  
Serena/Yami - 8  
  
Serena/Yugi - 5  
  
Serena/Bakura - 3  
  
Serena/Pegasus - 1  
  
And 1 request for a Serena/Kaiba pairing  
  
The pairings will become final in a few chapters or so, so for all of you that want a specific pairing, time is running out.  
  
Yugi: ::Pouts:: I still think it should be me::  
  
Silver: Now Yugi, what have I told you about sulking? Anyway people, I would like to thank Lady Light, Lilaclight, and Kage-shadow of darkness, for their on-going support, and Tasha Shanafelt for all of her information that she sent me. So, without further adieu, here is the next chappie! ^_^  
  
  
  
Chapter 5: Strength of Innocence  
  
"You called me Master Yami?" The seven foot tall magician glided out of the alley. His dark purple robes seemed to be made out of the shadows themselves, and his dark blue eyes were hard and merciless.  
  
"Get rid of that bug!" Yami shouted. "Dark Magic attack!" Following Yami's command, the Dark Magician swung his staff forward, causing the Man Eater Bug to glow an ominous dark purple. Seconds later, it burst into tiny particles, which seemed to fade into the surrounding shadows.  
  
"I think your game is over tomb robber! This has gone far enough!" Yami held up his hand, the eye Ra glowing on his forehead. "Mind Crush!"  
  
As Yami's attack reached Bakura, his body began to glow a sickening blackish-green color. "Your tricks can't affect me Pharaoh!" he shouted, beginning to laugh. "You may be powerful, but the power of Chaos overwhelms your pitiful little attempts. You should give up now, and hand over your Millennium Puzzle. Maybe I will go easy on your little hikari!"  
  
Cutting off his attack abruptly, Yugi grinned and began to laugh. "You think you can beat me Bakura? I'm hardly trying. I still have many tricks up my sleeve that you don't know about."  
  
Bakura frowned, considering, then smiled. "You're bluffing," he shouted back. "I know you Pharaoh. Did you forget that I lived along with you five thousand years ago? You may have learned how to summon monsters without the power of that puzzle, but your power is as nothing compared to mine!"  
  
"We'll see about that tomb robber."  
  
  
  
  
  
Serena and Pegasus had just left the building, when she stiffened, as if listening to some far off sound. "One of the fragments of Chaos has shown itself." She told him. "It is in the city now, fighting Yugi."  
  
Turning to face him, Pegasus looked into her forever-sad eyes, and saw that they had now hardened with determination and anger. Without a second thought for the people around her, she quickly transformed into Cosmos, showing her true form in all its ageless beauty.  
  
"I must go to him to make sure it is destroyed for good." She said, a hint of steel in her voice. "Wait here for me. I will return soon." With that, the cloak that had been on her shoulders reformed itself into large white wings, and she took to the air.  
  
  
  
  
  
The wind rushed past her, whipping her silver hair into a fury behind her slender body. Straining her wings to their utmost, she attempted to pour on that little bit of extra speed. She mustn't be too late. She must arrive in time to stop the Chaos.  
  
It was all she had left really. She had lashed out at Pegasus when he had asked her why she was helping him. The reaction automatic to the pain he had brought once more to the surface of her heart. Friends, gone, lost forever; her fault. 'Why?' The question floated through her head, attempting to break her concentration. Angry at her bout of self-pity, she brushed the unbidden thought aside.  
  
Anger at herself, determination to save others this pain.soul consuming pain. It was all she had left in life. She grasped at it desperately as her only way of breaking the cycle of depression and self-loathing.  
  
'I will not fail. I will arrive in time. This world will not be consumed by Chaos.' She repeated it over in her head. "I will destroy you Chaos! Do you hear me?" Nothing but the wind answered her however, and she turned her thoughts to the upcoming battle as she neared the scene of the battle.  
  
Her eyes widened as she came upon Yami - Yes it was Yami, he was unmistakably taller, and ancient magic seemed to radiate from him - and a white haired teenager glowing with a hideous green-black light who was undoubtedly being controlled by one of the shards of Chaos she was after.  
  
What surprised her though, was not the people, nor was it the magic and power she felt radiating from either of them. Instead, it was the dual personality, which was also in the one possessed by Chaos, and the precise - spell - she felt Yami calling forth.  
  
'He's trying to separate them!' She realized in a flash of insight. 'I'm not really sure if that's a good or a bad thing though. Separation from its host will drain the Chaos of some of its power, but it will also free it from any restraints it previously had because of the purity of the other soul. And with that shield it has up.'  
  
Her thoughts trailed away as she began to descend, contemplating the possibilities of this action which she now knew she would be too late to prevent.  
  
  
  
  
  
Yami held up his hand, palm outward, gathering all of his power for the one magic attack he knew Yami Bakura could not block. It was the fact that they were separate souls that made this all possible.  
  
Yami Bakura was evil: a corrupt soul that dealt with Chaos and death. Bakura - the real Bakura; was an innocent; as were all 'hikaris'. An innocent soul, like Yugi or Bakura would always strive on some level to be free of a corrupt one. Though opposites would attract, like Yugi's light, and his darkness; Chaos and order, or purity, would always push each other away.  
  
He could act upon the force that push them away, and use it to separate the two souls.  
  
'If I can separate them, not only can Bakura be free, but also the corrupt soul in his ring will be greatly weakened. Perhaps enough that I can destroy it.'  
  
Wasting no more time, Yami released the attack he had been preparing for. "Soul Separation!" he shouted.  
  
A blazing gold light gathered in a stream from his hand, and rocketed towards Yami Bakura. His eyes widened in consternation, as at the last second, the corrupted spirit of the ring brought into visibility another shield. This shield, however, was of a slightly different type. Just as the attack hit it, part of it was reflected back toward Yugi.  
  
'This could sever the connection between us." Was Yami's last thought, before the golden light from his own attack engulfed him as well, and everything went black.  
  
  
  
  
  
'I was too late.' The thought echoed agonizingly through her head. Always too late it seemed, to protect those who she was closest to. The fact that they had only just met mattered not. There had been a connection between her and the others. Now she was too late.  
  
Her friends had not lost their lives this time, but.  
  
Serena surveyed the wreckage of the street where the battle had taken place. Rubble was strewn all over the place from damaged walls, and shards of glass littered the street. In the middle, where the damage was greatest, were the unconscious bodies of those who had fought.  
  
Four bodies.  
  
  
  
Silver Angel: All tight! ::jumps up and down, cheering:: I got the next chapter out. It took five days, but that's not really too long. Anyway, I hope you liked it. I had so many ideas, and ways that this chapter could turn out, but only the generalities. I had a hard time figuring out just how events would take place.  
  
Yugi: I'll say you had a hard time. You left off with me telling Bakura I had a 'secret move' for about two days! I was so worried that it wouldn't work and I'd get beaten up!  
  
Silver: ::stares at her feet:: Yeah, well you know I suck at anything resembling fight scenes Yugi. Besides, I just had a lot of trouble with this chapter.  
  
Anyways, one of the main purposes of what happened in this chapter was to pave the way for any possible pairings I might do. I thought it would be easier to do a Yami/Serena, or a Yugi/Serena (if they win) If they shared a body; same with Bakura.  
  
Yugi: I can definitely understand that.  
  
Silver: ::stamps her foot:: Yugi, stop interrupting me. You're getting to be as bad as Duo!  
  
Duo: ::from far away:: What was that?  
  
Silver: Anyways minna, please read and review! 


	6. Chapter 6: Loss and Gain

Silver Angel: Hello to everyone out there reading this fic! Before starting Chapter 6 of The Angel of Light, I would like to take special time to thank some of my kind reviewers. ^_^  
  
To BlueFrost: You were one of my first reviewers, thank you for the positive comments, and for the idea which I think I may use later in my fic!  
  
To Lilaclight: You are one of the people who have reviewed the most! Thank you so much!  
  
To Kage-shadow-of-darkness: Thanks for the prompting on the pairings, the info on Millenium items, and all the reviews!  
  
To starfury3000: Thanks for the wonderful review early on, and the idea to have Sere help Pegasus!  
  
To Ladylight: Thanks for all the reviews you've given me!  
  
To everyone else: I love the reviews! Please continue!  
  
One last note: I don't mind anonymous reviews or voting, but someone has been voting anonymously for the same person each time. I have decided to disregard all but one of those, as I don't think it is fair for one person to cast the same vote six times.  
  
Okay here are the results for the voting:  
  
Yami/Serena: 19  
  
Yugi/Serena: 7  
  
Bakura/Serena: 5  
  
Yami Bakura/Serena: 1  
  
Kaiba/Serena: 3  
  
Malik/Serena: 21  
  
Pegasus/Serena: 3  
  
  
  
Next up: If anyone thinks that a specific Sailor Senshi should be brought in for the purpose of this fic, you can e-mail and tell me, and I will see if I can bring them in. Other wise, they'll probably stay dead.  
  
On with Chapter 6!  
  
Yugi: Finally! Talk about a long intro.  
  
  
  
Chapter 6: Loss and Gain  
  
Pain: an endless soul-numbing sort of pain. It was as if his mind had been shattered, and his body broken. The last he remembered was - what was the last thing he remembered? So hard to think. A nagging ache from deep within his mind seemed to get in the way; as if he had lost something.But what?  
  
The darkness was comforting in its way. While within it, he didn't have to worry about facing the terrifying reality he knew was facing him. Golden light! That was it! That was what had happened to him.but before that.darkness, and panic. A mocking laughter echoing grossly in his ears.  
  
'Do not try to fight me!' it had said. Yes, but fight what? His memories began to filter past the muzzy state he was in, becoming sharper, more recognizable.  
  
The Ring! He had it now! It was the Millennium ring, which was somehow connected to the state he was in. (A.N. can you guess who this is now?) He had put on the ring, tugging it past his long white hair, and then came the first pain. The first in a long series of pain, which he had believed would destroy him.  
  
When Bakura had out on the ring, it had taken over his body; told him not to fight it; that it was useless. After screaming and battering silently at the walls of his mind for what seemed like ages, finally came release.  
  
A golden light, which had filtered through the blocks in his mind that whatever had taken his body for its own, had placed there. It had hurt.yes, the pain he still felt was a testament to that, yet it had freed him as well.  
  
Now - A sound broke the stillness of his mind. 'Am I waking up?' Bakura was nervous. What would he find when he woke up? What had his body done while he was not in control?  
  
  
  
The white haired boy groaned, sitting up from his position on a rich couch. 'Where am I?' he thought, gazing around the rich office. No one he knew had their own office, except maybe Kaiba, but it was doubtful that that was where he was.  
  
'Of course I'm not in Kaiba's office' he berated himself mentally. 'Why would he let me in there, let alone lay on his couch?' The door to the office cracked open, and Bakura looked up quickly, and found himself gazing into the face of Maximillion Pegasus.  
  
"So you're awake then boy?" The millionaire walked into the room, sitting down at one of the chairs nearby. "I was wondering how long you'd be out. Two of your friends already woke up."  
  
"What- what happened" he asked, trying to fight back his anxiousness as ideas of what he may have done flowed through his head. "Did I - did I hurt anyone? Please say that I didn't!"  
  
Pegasus gave a small smile at that. "Well boy, I'm not sure if you could really call it hurting." he trailed off. "It depends on what their reactions to the new developments are. I haven't exactly gotten a chance to talk to either of them yet."  
  
"By either of them you mean.?"  
  
"I mean Yugi boy and his other half of course." He steepled his hands in front of him, resting his chin on them. "I'm guessing from all these questions that you don't remember what happened then?"  
  
Bakura looked down, staring at is lap. "I remember putting on the Millennium Ring my father gave me, and then.well it was as if my mind was trapped or something. I had no control over my body. I don't even know what I did!"  
  
"I suppose you want answers as to what happened then?" Bakura nodded his head, desperate to find out what he had done. "Well come along then. I'll take you to Serena. She's the one who will be able to answer your questions, not I"  
  
  
  
There was another him lying on a couch in the room adjoining to the office. "Is that me?" He asked, unsure what to make of this new development. It looked like him, but even in his sleep, this person had slight dissimilarities.  
  
His face had a harsher, crueler look to it. As if he had been through much pain, and had come out with the intent to return it all tenfold. His white hair was the same shade as Bakura's, but seemed slightly longer, and made him seem older than Bakura was.  
  
"Not exactly," Serena told him. "That is your darker half - your Yami, if you want to call it that. From what I gather, some of the Millennium items contain souls in them. Those who were destined to wield the items, are the other half of the soul imprisoned within. Thus, you would be the Hikari - the light half, and he is the Yami."  
  
Bakura nodded, feeling slightly overwhelmed with this new information. Another soul. "Is he the one who took over my body then? If he is my darker half." He trailed off, not wanting to believe that part of his soul, even the dark part, would want to cause so much pain.  
  
"In a manner of speaking, your dark half is the one who took over your body." She tossed her long blond hair over her shoulder.  
  
"His soul was sealed in the Millennium Ring thousands of years ago, when the items were created. A few hundred years ago, fragments of Chaos, an enemy I had fought and defeated, came to this world, and entered the Millennium items; probably drawn to them because of the magic already instilled within them." She paused a moment, allowing the facts to sink in.  
  
"Normally, a soul within the item would have helped protect it from the invasion of the Chaos. With your Millennium Ring however, possibly because of the fact that its magic dealt with removing souls from their bodies, which is Chaos' purpose, or possibly because of a stronger piece of it, the immunity did not work.  
  
She looked down sadly at the body of his Yami. "His soul, being a Yami was not innocent, but it was by no means totally evil. When the Chaos entered the Ring however, it corrupted the soul within - the other half of your soul. When you put the ring on, you allowed him to take control of your body. Before Yugi's Yami threw the blast that separated your bodies, he put up a shield that flung part of the attack back at him, causing Yugi and Yami to be separated as well."  
  
Bakura looked up from the body of his other half. "Can you help him? Pegasus told me that you removed the Chaos from him, and healed him. Is there any way you can help my Yami?" It upset him that the other half of his soul had been corrupted like this. 'What would he have been like if this had never happened? Would he have attacked Yugi and caused him and Yami to be separated?'  
  
Serena gazed into his eyes, judging his intent. "I believe that I can help him, but it will take a lot of power. The Chaos has been a part of his soul for so long, that the two are nearly completely meshed. Separating them will take a lot of work. He has done so much evil already." She trailed off, letting him decide.  
  
She was right; Bakura knew. It would take a lot. Still. "Please, will you heal him? It wasn't his fault, and he didn't ask for any of this."  
  
Serena smiled at him, looking satisfied at his decision. "Though it will not be easy, I am glad you have made this decision. You have compassion Bakura, and it shows that you have not been corrupted by your encounter.  
  
Bakura blushed, and shifted uncomfortably under her wise ageless gaze.  
  
  
  
With Yugi sleeping inside on Pegasus' couch, Yami was left alone on the balcony outside. He gazed up at the stars. 'They look so close from here, but in reality they are so far apart.'  
  
It was just like Yugi and him. They could be standing right next to each other, but they could never be as close as they once had. Not unless he could find a way to reverse what had been done. They still had a bit of a telepathic bond, being two halves of the same soul, but much of what they had shared would be diminished.  
  
He sighed, still looking up into the night sky; wondering what would happen now. Footsteps behind him caused him to look up. Behind him was Serena, now in her Cosmos form. She looked as close to exhausted as he had ever seen her.  
  
"Are you okay?" He asked, ready to stand up and help her if need be.  
  
"I'll be fine," she told him, sitting down and giving a weary sigh. "It just took a lot out of me, trying to untangle the original spirit of the Ring from the Chaos wrapped around it." Yami nodded, and returned to looking up at the sky.  
  
"They're very beautiful tonight," she said, following his gaze toward the stars. He nodded absently, still thinking about his hikari, and how things would be different now that they were two separate people.  
  
"He's still there, you know." She remarked, as if reading his thoughts. "You may be separate beings, but you are still two halves of the same soul. Different bodies will not change that."  
  
Yami tuned towards her. Ancient spirit that he was, he couldn't help but feeling a little lost. He was on his own at least marginally, for the first time in Millennia. He gave her a sad smile. "He is still there, but it is different now. I myself, and only half a person. Just the Yami. I am not complete on my own. Even in the past, when I was a single person - the Pharaoh - I was complete."  
  
She looked at him, understanding how he felt. "I felt the same way when I lost my friends." She told him. "It had been 'us' for so long, that I felt like a broken soul when I lost them. I still feel that way really." Without moving her gaze from space, she reached out and took his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze of reassurance.  
  
  
  
Somewhere Else:  
  
A figure with Platinum hair waited in the darkness, using the cover of night to keep himself hidden. His lilac eyes almost seemed to glow in the darkness. The fact that they had no pupils, only lended to their supernatural appearance. When he spoke, his voice seemed to cause the entire night to fall silent for a moment. "I am coming Pharaoh." He whispered.  
  
  
  
Silver Angel: Hey minna, well there was chapter six. I hope you enjoyed it.  
  
Yugi: ::pouts:: How come I wasn't in this chapter?  
  
Silver: Sorry about that Yugi, but I couldn't really find a spot to fit you in without throwing off the flow of the chapter. You'll should be in the next one though, so don't worry.  
  
Um guys. I'm really asking you to review my story this time. I'm feeling kinda worthless right now in regards to fanfiction, and I need some encouragement. Please review! 


	7. Chapter 7: Dream Connections

Yugi: ::walks out of Silver's writing corner, paper in hand:: Silver Angel would like to announce to any ravening lawyers waiting in the wings, that she does not own Sailor Moon or Yu-Gi-Oh. ::walks away amongst the groans of thwarted suing::  
  
Silver Angel: Hello minna! Thankies so much for all of the wonderful reviews! It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, to know that you guys all enjoy my story.  
  
Yugi: And it makes her update faster too!  
  
Silver: Ano, I'm sorry it took slightly longer to bring out the next chapter, but I have a huge test to study for, and I was trying to brain storm some good ideas for this chapter.  
  
Okay here are the final results for the voting:  
  
Yami/Serena: 44  
  
Yugi/Serena: 10  
  
Bakura/Serena: 5  
  
Yami Bakura/Serena: 1  
  
Kaiba/Serena: 5  
  
Malik/Serena: 42  
  
Pegasus/Serena: 4  
  
Sooo.On with chapter 7! ^_^  
  
  
  
Chapter 7: Dream Connections  
  
I made a promise to you,  
  
That I would never break your heart.  
  
Yet do to circumstances,  
  
I could not hold my part.  
  
Now across the endless distance,  
  
Filled with chasms of pain,  
  
I will return to you,  
  
Never to leave again.  
  
  
  
Yami was dreaming, yet it was unlike anything he had experienced before. After spending several thousand years locked within the Millennium puzzle, to all intents and purposes asleep, he had thought, that he would be used to the many forms his dreams would often come in.  
  
Not this. This dreamscape was completely surreal, yet it seemed just as real as the normal world; as if he were not truly dreaming, but on a different level of existence. A separate plane, made up of purple mists that obscured everything from view, and caused any sound he made, to be absorbed so that it made only the faintest whisper in the thick seeming air.  
  
As he gazed dispassionately around him, he heard footsteps to the left, whose sound echoed strangely, and was not absorbed by the all-consuming mist. Slowly, a figure became visible, and then, a second.  
  
The first had long forest green hair, partially pulled up into a bun, and reaching past her waist. She wore a strange sailor type of uniform, in black and garnet with black knee high boots, and she also carried a lavender staff with a red jewel on the top, stylized to look like a key. The aura of age and power she gave off sent a small shiver up his spine.  
  
"I see you've found us then," the first woman said, her garnet eyes looking at him piercingly.  
  
The second smiled softly. She was somewhat smaller than the other, but the aura of power she held - it was one of death and destruction, similar to the way Exodia felt when he first summoned it to defeat Seto Kaiba. She had a similar outfit on to that of the first woman, except it was in purple and black. In one hand, she held a long wickedly pointed glaive that was taller than she herself was.  
  
"We were expecting that someone eventually would get past her barriers enough for this to happen." The second one added, the smile still playing around her lips.  
  
Yami frowned in consideration as he looked at their outfits, and compared them to the one Serena was wearing when he first saw her, and whenever she was in her form as Cosmos. There were some differences of course, but over all, both had the same feel to them.  
  
"You know Serena, don't you" he asked, mentally cursing himself for asking such an inane question. "That is - with the outfits you must have similar powers as her.am I right?"  
  
The time it was the green haired woman who spoke. "To put it simply, yes. I'm sure she has told you something of her past?" At Yami's small nod she continued. "Well, than I won't have to explain to much. I am Sailor Pluto, the senshi of time."  
  
"And I am Sailor Saturn, the sailor senshi of destruction and rebirth," the smaller one spoke up. "The fact that we are here, means that Serena finally has the power as Cosmos to separate us from her soul, without losing all power."  
  
"You're one of the friends that died when she was facing Chaos for the first time? She told me that you had died and couldn't come back."  
  
"It may have been that way at first," Pluto told him. "But over time, her power has grown, and contact with ours has caused her own to take on some the characteristics of ours. She no longer has to have our souls merged to retain the power of Cosmos."  
  
"So why did you bring me to - this place and tell me? Why not Serena herself if you were friends?" Yami asked, curious.  
  
Saturn smiled sadly. "She has lived without us, all alone in space for nearly three hundred years. Her reaction if she was suddenly able to talk to us, and find out that we could come back would probably be.bad."  
  
"She blames herself for what happened to us all those years ago," Pluto cut in. "She thinks it is her fault that we all died, when in reality, we would have gladly died to save her if it was needed - and it was. We had to merge with her in order to make her become Cosmos. The universe needed someone to stop Chaos, and she was the only one who possibly could."  
  
"And so we came to you." Saturn finished. "You have a bond with her. Something of a soul bond. You were meant for each other; can you not feel it?" Yami thought about this and nodded uncertainly. Though certainly nothing like his bond with Yugi - two halves of the same soul - he certainly felt something, and it was hard to describe in any other way than what the petite girl had said.  
  
"My self and Pluto are the ones who contacted you, because it was the easiest for us to reach out to your soul. Your powers are the most similar to ours, thus we could wind you easier than say Venus - the scout of Love." As small smile at that last, as though the thought of this were amusing.  
  
"Your powers are similar to mine?"  
  
Pluto nodded. "You are a spirit.ancient in the terms of your world. You must have something of the power of Time within you to have been able to keep your presence on this world; even sealed within the artifact you call the Millennium puzzle."  
  
Yami turned to Saturn. "And you?" he asked. She did say destruction and rebirth, but his abilities didn't really border on either, and he was curious about the similarities they could have.  
  
"Your name means darkness does it not? We share some of the same nature, you and I. Though not evil, we will do what we must to ensure the reaching of our goals, and the fulfillment of our duties."  
  
As Yami was about to answer, he felt the air suddenly become thinner, and when he looked up, he realized the fog was diminishing visibly.  
  
"You must decide when to tell her what you have learned Pharaoh." Saturn told him, her form already beginning to diminish into shadows along with the mist. Yami's eyes widened in surprise that she should know this about his past life. "The time may not yet be right for us to separate from her. You shall have to choose."  
  
With that, the dream ended, and Yami awoke.  
  
  
  
When he returned to consciousness, Yami was at first unsure of where he was. The sky gleamed azure directly above him, and the sun shone in his face. With a rush, the previous night came back to him. He and Serena had been stargazing together, and the last thing he remembered was falling asleep with her already asleep against his shoulder. (A.N. Awww.Isn't that sweet)  
  
The dream too, came back to him. Sailor Saturn and Sailor Pluto - two of Serena's friends whom she thought were dead; the thought making her desperately unhappy. Her last words also came back to him: 'The time may not yet be right for us to separate form her'.  
  
She might be right he decided, still looking up at the sky, unmoving from his prone position on the balcony. If he told Serena right away.well he hated to cause her any greater anguish than she already had. The thought of her deep blue eyes filled with tears struck him, and his spirits sank. Though he rarely saw her smile, he had seen it once, and the happiness that filled them.well he just wanted to be the one to cause them to sparkle, to dance like they had.  
  
Coming back to himself from his daydream, he gave himself a mental slap. 'Now is not the time to be acting like a love struck fool' he scolded himself. 'And though I would not see her upset any longer, I do believe that Saturn was right in that now may not be the correct time to pass on their message to her. Pushing himself to his feet, Yami headed towards the glass door, which was the entrance to Pegasus' office.  
  
  
  
  
  
A pair of deep brown eyes flickered open, their owner sitting up and gazing around the strange room, a lost look on his face. "What.happened to me?" he whispered. Every single part of his past seemed to be a blank. The only respite from the awful vacantness was a dim memory of sand, and heat, and - his name - Yes, he did know that! A small moment of joy erupted within him, as he realized that his memory was not a completely vacant slate.  
  
His name was Kage. And, he had grown up in.Egypt? Yes, that was the right of it. He had grown up in Egypt, though he still didn't know what he had done, or anything else of his life for that matter.  
  
And just how had he gone from that place of heat and sandstorms to this strange room of glass and other foreign materials? Glass had been a rarity where he had come from, only those of status owning a real amount of it; and the other materials he saw would not even have graced the Pharaoh's palace, so strange were they. Something strange, which was shiny like glass, yet opaque and could be found in many shapes and colors. The piece of furniture he was laying on was covered in what he identified as leather - so much of it! From what he could glean from his vague memories, animals were too important to waste on covering a whole chair or anything similar from it.  
  
He sighed, standing up and walking around the strange room, and marveling at all the strange textures and sights. Walking over to one wall, which looked to be completely made of clear glass, he gazed out and found himself looking down - far down! - At the ground. He stumbled back from the window, and tripped over a footrest, falling onto the floor.  
  
Ra, but he was high up! This room alone wasn't much closer to the ground than many of the pyramids. Pushing himself back to his feet, he returned to the window and gazed out, astonished at the view. On the streets below him many people were walking around, dressed in brightly colored garments, along with strange things which moved much faster along the road, which he vaguely thought might be some sort of cart.  
  
A door opening caused him to quickly look up. Just when he thought he couldn't see anything that surprised him more that day, he saw the person who had walked into the room. It was him! Kage sat down hard on the floor. The person who had just walked into the room looked exactly like him!  
  
  
  
  
  
Yugi: I wasn't in this chapter! You said I would be in this chapter! ::pouts:: Did you forget about me?  
  
Silver Angel: Of course I didn't forget about you Yugi! I just had a lot of ideas of things to put in this chapter. I wanted to be able to bring one or more of the Senshi back, and I wanted to have Kage wake up-  
  
Yugi: Yes but what about me?! I'm supposed to be one of the main characters! You can't just go off on a tangent about Yami falling in love with Serena and forget about me! For that matter, why can't I be with Serena?  
  
Silver: I am sorry about forgetting about you Yugi, but this chapter was busy enough as it was. I had a lot of writers block at first, and had a hard time writing a few things out, even though I had a lot of great ideas. As to you and Serena, well maybe in my next fic!  
  
Yugi: Well. Do you promise?  
  
Silver: Sure Yugi! Now Tell the nice readers the message I gave to you.  
  
Yugi: Silver-chan has some announcements for her kind reviewers.  
  
To Chibi-chibi: As you can see above, Yugi is rather persistant about a fic matching him and Serena. There is a good chance that I might right other Yu-Gi-Oh/Sailor Moon crossovers, probably trying out some of the different couples. Thanks a bunch for the review!  
  
To Bluefrost: Thank you for all of the great comments you gave. You may not realize it, but they do give me ideas.  
  
To Lady Adako: Yes I am already planning some scenes to do with Battle city, and probably having Serena in it. That goes for anyone else who requested Serena as a duelist. And thank you too for the review!  
  
To ChibiChaos: Thank you sooo much for all of your encouragement. ^_^  
  
To Lilaclight: Malik is the owner of the Millennium Rod, and he also has a Yami. He has a grudge on 'The Pharoah' because his Yami told him it was his fault that his father was killed, when in fact, it was Yami Malik who did the deed. Also, thank you for all of your support. It really helps when you're down in the dumps! ^_^  
  
To Oracle of the Stars: See above explanation for Malik, and thanks for the review!  
  
To SilverSkye: Thank you for the very nice review!  
  
To anonomouse: Thank you very much for the idea of bringing Saturn back! ^_^  
  
To everyone else, thank you as well. I've never gotten this many reviews for a chapter.  
  
::Runs around with a bunch of papers in her hands laughing and giggling:: Reviews Reviews, lalalala! ^_^ 


	8. Chapter 8: Embrace the Elements

Silver Angel: Not really too much to say in the author's notes this time around. I would like to apologize to any of you who thought that the last chapter was a bit short. It seemed a good place to end it, and I didn't really think I could add more without breaking down the meaning of some of the things I had already written.  
  
Yugi: Humph! I still think you should have written about me.  
  
Silver: Yes, Yugi has been complaining non-stop for the past two chapters. I think I should muse-ify Yami to keep him under control.  
  
Yugi: Keep me under control?!!  
  
Silver: Anyways, this next chapter is going to have Yugi in it. I'll also include Serena, because she wasn't actively in my last chapter as well. Also, due to popular demand, and the fact that I think it is a good plot development, Serena will be entering Battle City. I have made up a bunch of cards for her to use, considering I don't know too many of the real cards.  
  
Now before I blather on forever, I will start the next chapter and stop boring you. ^_^  
  
  
  
Chapter 8: Embrace the Elements  
  
Serena had woken up early that morning, finding herself curled up on the balcony with her arms around Yami. Thankfully, he was still sleeping. Even so, she had found herself blushing a bright red; she who had all but forced herself to forget what emotions meant.  
  
"Why do I feel this way?" She asked herself as she sat inside gazing blankly into space. "I don't love him; I can't! Darien was my soul mate, and he died in the fight against Chaos!" Pain engulfed her heart, as for what seemed like the millionth time, she found herself reliving that awful fight. The one she and the scouts had deemed 'the Last Battle'.  
  
'We all thought that it would be the end to our struggles. That we could finally have peace; true peace(1). Crystal Tokyo was supposed to come around, and I would have Rini.' Her thoughts trailed off as she bitterly regarded the prospect of that ever happening. Rini - her child - had died, and would never even exist now because of her. Because she had been too slow, too weak! She was pathetic!  
  
  
  
  
  
Hold fast to dreams  
  
  
  
For if dreams die  
  
  
  
Life is a broken-winged bird  
  
  
  
That cannot fly(2)  
  
  
  
A favorite poem she had studied as a teenager floated through her head. She had never been good in any subject, but this one had always stuck in her head. For her, it had truly epitomized her beliefs. Without dreams, what cause had she to fight? And protecting her friends, and all the people on the Earth: that had been her dreams.  
  
Now.well her life had become in a way, a broken-winged bird; or at least, it had one broken wing. While there were still people in the universe; innocents or otherwise, she would seek to help them. She would strive to protect them, the way she hadn't been able to protect her friends. But half of her dream was gone. Her friends lost forever.  
  
Looking down at her hands, she saw herself clutching tightly at the cards she had asked Pegasus to make for her when they had first come to his office. A regular sized normal deck, with ten strong one-of-a-kind cards inside.  
  
Another fragment of Chaos was coming, she knew. Her connection to the Gates of Time through Pluto allowed her to sometimes have visions of the past, present, and future. This was one of those time. During the night she had for some reason felt the flow of time grow stronger through her, creating a dream - or vision as may be - while she slept.  
  
A person, giving off a strong aura of Chaos with Platinum hair and Lilac colored eyes that reminded her of Hotaru. Laughing cruelly and stabbing Yami.she shuddered at that image, for she had grown fond of spirit who was so much like her. In the background she had seen a poster for a Duelist tournament called Battle City, and overshadowing Yami and the other, three figures with drastically different auras.  
  
All gave off a feeling of strength, though one seemed covered in darkness, and exuded suffering and torment. Another, wrapped in gold light had warmth and justice. The third was glowing a misty blue, and reminded her of Amara, in that there was a feeling of the sky to it. The different lights enveloping each figure stopped her from seeing there true form, however she knew that they would figure strongly in the coming conflict, however it might turn out.  
  
Pulling herself away from the memory of the vision, she examined the nine special cards. Pegasus had done a good job with their likenesses; following exactly from the pictures she had told him to read from her mind. They all looked like normal duel monsters cards, except for the different color border around the edge of each, and the fact that she knew they were all special editions.  
  
The first had a pale blue border around the edge, and the figure on it was that of a blue haired girl in an ice-blue gown, holding a harp that seemed to be made of water frozen in its likeness. It was labeled as the Shaman of Ice. Ami. The next had a border of red, the figure a girl with raven hair in similar dress of red with a bow and arrow made of fire. Priestess of Fire, it was called; and it represented Rae.  
  
Each card represented one of her senshi, wearing the same dresses, except in their own special color, with a similarly colored border. The Goddess of Love, Mina; the Amazon of Lightning, Lita. She also had cards for the Outers: Hotaru, who's card was the Sovereign of Silence; Amara, the Warrior of the Sky; Michelle, the Enchantress of the Sea, and Pluto the Guardian of Time.  
  
Finally, she had had two very special cards made for Darien, and Rini, which were the Moon Princess (a title would have passed to Rini if she'd survived, after Serena had become Cosmos) a card with a pale pink border, depicting Rini in her princess dress, the golden crescent symbol on her forehead; and the Earth Knight, which showed Darien in his full Prince armor.  
  
Each of her senshi had their own card, and Darien too. Just as each of them held a place in her heart that could never be filled - not in all the Millennia she would live. Yami had mentioned the previous night something he called 'the heart of the cards'. To her, this was what it represented. She would duel with her friends in mind. Though she could never see them again, she would still fight for them, and for all the others who depended on her to stop Chaos.  
  
The door to the balcony creaked open, and she found herself turning to look at Yami. He was so much like her. He too had lost the world he had grown up in, and his duty to those he cared about overwhelmed all else. For the first time that morning she smiled. She had found a kindred spirit in him. Perhaps she wasn't quite as alone as she thought?  
  
"Come," she told the spirit, who was, in essence, older than she was. "Sit down Yami. I want to show you the deck I had Pegasus make for me to enter the duel that will be coming."  
  
  
  
  
  
It had been a long, sleepless night for Yugi. One filled with tossing and turning, his mind dashing full tilt through all that had happened that day. That day: It was such a simple term for what could more accurately be called the most horrifyingly awful soul-rending day of his life. It had been soul rending; both in literal terms when his soul had been sundered from Yami's; and in terms of the heart, which had caused his lack of sleep that night.  
  
'I never truly knew what it was like to feel completely alone before now,' he thought. 'Even when I was younger, before I received the puzzle and met Yami, I was not alone. I still have Joey and the others who were my friends before, but it's not the same. I hadn't found the other half of my soul, so I didn't know what I was missing. Now I do; and it hurts."  
  
The details of the battle flashed before his eyes. Yami taking over and summoning the dark magician, shouting at Bakura, and the final attack which had reflected at him and separated them completely. 'Why did he have to do that?' Yugi wondered, the what ifs constantly plaguing his mind with new possibilities. 'If he hadn't tried to separate Bakura, then none of this would have happened.'  
  
His thoughts continued to whirl in the same pattern for a while, before logic finally began creeping up on him and smothering the pity and denial. Though he was by no means feeling better, he at least had managed to calm himself to the point where he could think clearly.  
  
'Yami's still here' he told himself emphatically, trying to ignore the tiny voice that answered 'but he's not with you any more is he Yugi'. Strangely enough - or perhaps not so strangely after all, the voice with all the negative comments seemed to be Kaiba's. It seemed as if even when they weren't direct enemies and he was all alone, that still Seto would find a way to try and bring him down.  
  
'Well I may have a reason to be upset,' he decided. 'But that doesn't mean I have to sit here all day and feel sorry for myself. I could be worse off.' An unbidden thought came to mind of Serena, who had lost all of her friends forever; and then one of Pegasus, whose love of his wife drove into the arms of Chaos. 'I shouldn't dwell on things like that, if only because it won't really help. At least I still have Yami.'  
  
Determined to stop sitting around, he pushed himself up and went to find Serena. 'Maybe there will be something she can do to help.'  
  
  
  
  
  
Explanations were perhaps the most difficult things he had ever done, Bakura mused as he tried to tell his other half - who said his name was Kage - exactly what had happed. It had been about two hours since he had met his 'twin', and all of it had been spent trying to tell his Yami - Kage, he reminded himself - what had happened, and to receive his own answers.  
  
He had figured out pretty quickly that receiving answers wouldn't be easy, if not darn near impossible. Kage, it seemed, had no memory at all of his attempts at 'world domination'. The few recollections he did have were of ancient Egypt, and even those were extremely vague.  
  
'It's strange seeing him like this,' Bakura decided. What little he had known before of Kage, was an impression of evil and Chaos. Before Serena had purged his soul of the corruption he had looked cruel even in sleep. 'But he's so innocent now. Even if he was evil before, he isn't any more. I don't even think it was his fault that he became evil in the first place. If his character now is any judge, I doubt he would invite evil into his soul.'  
  
As the two talked, he managed to glean small bits of information from Kage. That he had grown up in Ancient Egypt was obvious. He had also been born into the lower class, though not a slave. Little more information could be gained from him however, and Bakura decided that it was probably high time he introduced his new found other half to Serena.  
  
'Perhaps she will have some answers for us.'  
  
  
  
They were all together now. Yami glanced at the people who filled the largest room of what made up Pegasus' offices. Serena sat down on one of the dark brown leather couches next to him, with Yugi on his other side.  
  
Though the relationship between them was.somewhat uncomfortable, due to recent events, he wouldn't have tried to stay away from Yugi ever. They were like brothers - closer really because of the soul bond they had shared, and still shared to a certain degree.  
  
Sharing a particularly large comfy looking chair, were Bakura and his Yami. Yami didn't seem appropriate in his case though, as he seemed almost as innocent as Bakura. 'It must have something to do with the healing Serena told me she had done last night; the one that made her look so tired just before she found me.' He thought.  
  
Pegasus was sitting behind his chair; his (now normal) slightly sad look on his face, though it was carefully disguised as concern over their current situation.  
  
Lastly, Tea, Tristan, and Joey had come in just before their meeting had started. All seemed in good spirits, thought they seemed worried about Yugi and his reaction to what had happened yesterday. As soon as they had arrived, they had commenced with asking him how he was doing, and if he needed anything.  
  
Serena cleared her throat, and Yami tensed as she prepared to explain their upcoming course of action. He new what would be coming, but her was curious about how the others would react.  
  
"Have any of you heard of Battle City?"  
  
  
  
Silver Angel: And there you have it folks! Chapter 8 is out. I have to say that I am proud of it, and I managed to write the whole thing in one day (minus some procrastinating), and the fact that I don't think it turned out all bad.  
  
Yugi: Yeah! And I finally got to be in a chapter again!  
  
Silver: Well, I guess I've pleased Yugi then too. Anyways minna, I hope that you like it. I tried my best to put in a little bit of character development here without making it too boring. I'm sorry if there wasn't much action again, but I thought there should be a bit of a break in the tension before I brought out Malik for real, and his sister Isis.  
  
I would like to make a small note here, saying that for anyone out there who writes fan fiction, a great resource to check out is the columns that are on the home page of ff.net. They have some great advice regarding characterization, research, and how to avoid the dreaded Mary Sues!  
  
Regarding notes:  
  
This was paraphrased from the final episode of Sailor Moon season 1 (called 'Day of Destiny' in the DIC dubbed version). She said something like this just after she defeated Queen Beryl.  
  
This is the first paragraph of a poem called 'Dreams' by Langston Hughes.  
  
Because I forgot to mention it at the beginning, and may do so in later chapters, I would like to point out to the rabid lawyers, that I don't, and never will own Sailor Moon, Yu-Gi-Oh, or any other previously created stories, their characters and situations. So there! ^_^;  
  
4) Nothing else to say, except Read and Review! ^_^ 


	9. Chapter 9: Crossing Swords

Silver Angel: Hello minna! Sorry about the long wait for this chapter. I had it all planned out, by I got sidetracked, and my Ken muse hooked my into starting another story about him. In any case, I'm back, and I submit this chapter for your (hopefully) approval. ^_^  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 9: Crossing Swords  
  
Seto Kaiba was angry. No, to say he was angry would be an understatement. Say instead that he was furious, and you would be closer to the truth. Bad enough that Yugi had been the one to defeat Maximillion Pegasus, and save him and his brother, but now this! Lady luck seemed to have turned against him, and was working with Circumstance to make his life a living hell.  
  
Aside from the fact that he was in Yugi's debt, things had started off normally enough. He had left the castle in duelist kingdom, scoffing the whole way home about that pretty blond girl's talk of magic. What was her name again? Sarah? It didn't really matter, except for the fact that her wise face seemed to stick in his mind.  
  
"Sooner or later you are going to have to trust someone. You will have no choice." Her last cryptic words before he had left stuck in his head. He didn't need to trust anyone! He got by just fine on his own! Still, what she had said bothered him. Especially considering the situation he was in now.  
  
Reminded of where he was, Seto cursed, and struck his fist against the stark white wall. He had just gotten out of Pegasus' hands, and now here! He was someone's captive again! At least this time he had his soul, but in a way that was worse. This time, he was all too aware of being at someone else's mercy, and this grated on his nerves like someone's constant off-key singing.  
  
He had left that stupid island, dragging a protesting Mokuba all the way with him all the way to his helicopter. The first order of business when he had reached his office was to get rid of those meddling directors of his company. They had tried to get rid of him, but their plan had backfired. Instead, he had fired each and every last one of them.  
  
The sweetness of victory had not lasted long however. Soon after regaining control, he had accepted a visitor into his office. Not unusual, considering the number of people who had business propositions for him everyday.  
  
Instead of the middle-aged man he was expecting however, a teenager had walked it. Platinum shoulder length hair hung about his face, and strange lavender eyes had been the first things to make him feel nervous. It wasn't that purple eyes were so uncommon, of course; it was the glint in them. A glint that reminded him of himself, only crueler, and slightly insane. Teenager or not, this was not a person to be messed with.  
  
He had found out exactly how true that feeling was, when he woke up several hours later, with no memory of what had happened. One moment, he had been in his office, the next he was in this room, with that strange person watching him and laughing. It galled him to watch, as the stranger had laughed and told him how easy he was to control. That he had made Kaiba set up a tournament as a trap for an old friend.  
  
Now all he could do was wait. He would have to wait until that jerk came back and let him out, or until someone realized that he was missing. "Fat chance of that," he muttered to himself, as he waited for the platinum haired idiot to come back, so that he could punch him.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Battle City is a new tournament set up by Seto Kaiba," Serena explained. "Considering how suddenly it came about, I would bet that he started advertising it almost as soon as he came back." She sat back into the couch, leaning into Yami unconsciously. "I'm not quite sure how it works yet, but I'm assuming it follows most conventional rules."  
  
Yami's eyes widened almost imperceptibly as he felt Serena lean into him, but he decided not to comment on that. "Do you think he set it up because of Yugi?" he asked, proposing one of his suspicions. "He seemed awfully upset when he left Duelist Kingdom. Maybe he wanted to challenge Yugi to prove that he was better?"  
  
Serena nodded thoughtfully. "That could be," she agreed. "In any case, I need to sign up for it. I had a - well, you might call it a premonition." Her gaze grew in intensity as she spoke. "One of the bearers of a Millennium item will be there. A particularly strong fragment of Chaos has taken control of him." Her eyes started to get worried. "In addition, there will be. something else there. Three somethings actually; and powerful."  
  
"Do you have any idea what they are?" Tea spoke up. "I mean, it probably wouldn't be a good idea to go into the tournament blindly."  
  
"Yeah. I remember when Yug and I started dueling at duelist kingdom. Those new rules were a big surprise." Joey added his own two cents. "If there's gonna be something special at that tournament, it would probably be better to check it out."  
  
Yugi stared at his friend for a moment. Joey was the last person anyone would expect to say look before you leap. It just wasn't in his nature. He did have a point though. Chasing after evil spirits was dangerous enough, without adding some other powerful creature to the mix.  
  
Serena nodded. "Yes, I plan to look into that." She told them with a dismissive wave of her hand. "In the mean time, I think I should go sign up for the tournament. And Yugi and Yami too, if they agree."  
  
Yami and Yugi nodded their assent, but before Serena could get up, Tristan broke in. "Don't you need a deck? I mean, you can't duel without one" He felt slightly foolish for stating the obvious, but he was curious. Serena had come from out in space from what he knew. Where would she get a dueling deck?  
  
Serena smiled at the question; a slightly sad smile, but a smile all the same. "I do have a deck," she told him. "If you would like to see.?" She trailed off, and pulled out her specially made deck. "I think I'll have a few tricks up my sleeve." She told everyone. "I have a few.custom made cards."  
  
She smiled at Pegasus at the last, and Yami couldn't help but feel a flash of jealousy. 'She couldn't like Pegasus! She was supposed to like him!' He blushed slightly as he remembered how she had leaned on him a few minutes ago - was still leaning on him in fact.  
  
Everyone oohed and aahed at seeing her one-of-a-kind cards. "Cool!" Joey exclaimed, taking a long look at the card, which represented Pluto. "What card is this? I've never heard of the Guardian of Time before."  
  
"That's because it's a brand new card that I had Mr. Pegasus make for me. It's the only one of its kind." The sad look returned to her eyes, as Joey commented on the card's special ability to stop the opponent for two turns once each time it was played. "All of the cards have a special ability," she told them, showing off her 'friends'.  
  
She held up the Shaman of Ice card. "This one lets you look at your opponents hand once each time it's played, and this one;" she held up the Priestess of Fire, "lets you look at the top card on your opponents deck, without them seeing it. All the abilities can only be used once per play, but still, I think they'll be useful, ne?"  
  
Yami was off in his own world while he looked at the cards. By strange chance, or Destiny, Serena had heard Yugi's call, and had come when he played the angel of light. Looking at the cards, he noticed two in particular. The Guardian of Time, and the Sovereign of Silence looked like Pluto and Saturn.  
  
Yugi grinned at her. Even though the abilities only worked once, they would still be a big advantage for her. Only the most experienced of duelists, or those with a Millennium item could hope to counter her. "No one will stand a chance with that deck. Especially seeing as you have some really good magic cards too. Mirror force, and some of those original magic and trap cards will make you unbeatable!"  
  
"That's what I'm hoping Yugi. Only the person possessed by Chaos, and perhaps you and Yami will have a chance at getting to the finals, so I intend to be there too, in order to stop this fragment." She smiled again, this time in anticipation. "What are we waiting for though? We have to sign up before all the spots are taken!"  
  
  
  
"Hello, we would like to sign up for the tournament." Serena told the bored looking official at the booth, pointing to herself, Yami, and Yugi. "Names.?" "Serena Moon, Yugi Motou, and Yami Motou." Yami and Yugi had decided to pose as brothers, seeing as they looked identical.  
  
The official perked up slightly at the sound of Yugi's name. "The world champ is here?"  
  
Yugi blushed slightly at this, and hung his head. "Yes, I'm the one who beat Seto Kaiba," he said, shooting an apologetic glance at Yami. The aforementioned spirit only 'hmmphed' quietly, and crossed his arms, pretending to look bored. While Yugi was interrogated by the official, Yami sidled closer to Serena, trying not to attract any attention while he did so.  
  
Serena smiled slightly at what Yami was doing, while pretending that she didn't notice. While she had tried not to admit it at first, she did have feelings for Yami, if only because she felt he understood her so well. When Yami was close enough, she reached out her hand to grasp his, watching in amusement as the light blush that was already on Yami's cheeks intensified.  
  
"Well come on then," she said, turning and dragging Yami with her. "We better go get ready! Places to go, people to duel.you get the picture!" Without another word, she pulled the still blushing Yami behind her as she started for the arena.  
  
The blond girl did not even notice the obstacle until she bumped into the person, falling backward to the ground. Jumping up and apologizing profusely to the person she had hit, she began brushing the dust off her skirt. "Gomen, gomen, gomen." she trailed off as she looked into a pair of eyes as violet as Yugi's.  
  
A hard look came into her own eyes, as she felt the aura of Chaos radiating off this new person. She also felt the open hostility towards Yami, and gripped his arm protectively. "Sorry about that." She told him, her manner not seeming at all apologetic. "We'll be going now." She gave Yami's arm an insistent tug as she walked away.  
  
"What was that all about?" he asked her.  
  
"I think," she said, her hands clutching her deck of cards. "That we've found what we're looking for."  
  
  
  
Silver Angel: Well minna? What did you think? Again, I would like to apologize for being so late with this, but I got sidetracked with another fic. Like I told you earlier, my Ken muse snuck up on me, hit me over the head, and tied me up till I agreed to write a fic about him.  
  
Ken: Yeah, but you know you wanted to write a fic about me.  
  
Silver Angel: Last chapter I put up, I got a review telling me that Bakura is Ryou, and Yami Bakura is Bakura. In reply, I would just like to say that I am perfectly aware of this. However, I watched all the shows in the dubbed version, and they put the names the way I used them. That's the reason I'm using the dubbed names too. I'm less likely to screw up and have both sets of names, if I work with what I'm most comfortable with. ^_^  
  
Anyways people, I tried to put a little more plot into this chapter, so I hope you like the results. Also, did I do okay with Kaiba? I find it kinda hard to relate to his character, so I'm not sure how well I did. Still, I hope you liked it. The next chapter will probably have a duel, and possibly bring back one of the scouts.  
  
Oh! And a Yu-Gi-Oh plushie of their choice to anyone who can guess how I'm gonna bring them back. I think it was kinda obvious, but that could just be me. ^_^  
  
Review Please! 


	10. Chapter 10:Reveal the Soul

Silver Angel: Wow.talk about a long silence. I want to apologize right now for not updating in so long. I had major writers block, even though I had an idea of what I wanted to happen. Gomen, Gomen. And thank you very much to all of the people who sent me reviews. They are much appreciated! Anyways, here is chapter ten. Hopefully, it is okay, and I didn't stumble too much getting over that writers block! ^_^  
  
Note: Most of the cards listed in this story will be fake. I don't know many of them.  
Chapter 10: Reveal the Soul  
  
Serena gazed unobtrusively to her left at Yami, who was still holding her hand. He didn't seem to realize it, but a small blush also graced his cheeks, and she giggled. 'I can imagine Yugi blushing' she thought, 'but for Yami to it is rather strange - but cute.' She grinned as the thought crossed her mind, which was the sight Yami was confronted with when he turned to ask he why she was laughing.  
  
"What's so funny?" He asked suspiciously, a cute frown passing over his features. Serena giggled again. "Oh nothing," she told him. "So these are the new dueling systems then?" She held up the fan shaped machine with slots for cards that was attached to her arm.  
  
"Yes, Seto Kaiba seems to have come up with an improved model of his duel disks - and very quickly too." Serena gave Yami a blank gaze.  
  
"Duel disks?"  
  
"And older model," the spirit explained. "It worked similarly to these, but was in two separate parts. He showed us some of the first model just a few days ago."  
  
"He must have had some sort of stroke of genius. Especially since we last saw him only yesterday." She smiled, but it did not quite reach her eyes. 'I knew there was something strange about this tournament right away. He couldn't have come up with a new dueling system like this in a day. I'll just have to stay on the look out then," she concluded, and shrugged any other worries off.  
  
"Yami." the pigtailed girl looked up at the boy next to her. She gave his hand a small squeeze, causing to look down at where he held her hand, in surprise. He did not pull away. "What do you remember about - your past? When I first came here, I knew that you were different from Yugi. Your soul feels."  
  
"Darker?" Yami suggested.  
  
"No, it feels older; more.I don't know.serious I guess. Who were you before you became trapped in the puzzle?" Her blue eyes looked at him innocently, unknowing of the pain some memories might cause him.  
  
Yami's eyes took on a faraway look. "I - do not remember much of my past." He told her. "I was trapped in that puzzle for.thousands of years. The time has clouded or erased many of my memories. There is little I remember that is pleasant. Most of it, I wish I had forgot; and sometime I wonder if all of my previous life was painful."  
  
Serena looked down at the road, watching the concrete pass under her feet as she walked. Gum wrapper, plastic spoon, scrap of flyer. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." She said to the ground. "I don't want to bring up painful memories. Goodness knows; I have enough of those of my own. I know how it feels."  
  
"It's alright," he told her softly. "It helps to tell others about how we feel. I should know. it's what I'm always saying to Yugi." Running a hand through his spiky hair, he began to tell her some of the bits and pieces that he could remember.  
  
"I was born in Egypt. I do not remember what my original name was; it has been. too long. I was a ruler - the Pharaoh I think. My parents died when I was young, and left me to rule from the time I was about eight. I remember.going to my father's burial. The priest of Osirus kept talking about the weighing of souls against a feather. I was so worried about my father - that he would not pass judgement."  
  
Yami sighed, tentatively placing an arm around her shoulder, which she snuggled into obligingly. "It's one of my earliest memories. I do not remember what happened to my mother, only that she was not around. Once my father died, all of my so called advisers tried to gain some sort of hold on me. They thought I would be some kind of puppet. When I gained mastery over the powers of the Shadow Games - " His eyes darkened with the memory of betrayal. "They tried to unleash monsters to kill me. I had no choice but to seal away the magic of the Shadow Realm with the Millennium items; but they managed to interfere enough to seal my soul in the puzzle until Yugi solved it."  
  
"You created the Millennium items?" Serena gazed up at Yami, surprised. "Your magic must have been strong if you were able to imbue them with enough force to attract the remnants of Chaos." She was prevented from saying anything more when Yugi, Joey, ran up to them from one direction, with Bakura and his Yami coming at them from another street.  
  
"There you two are!" Yugi called, as he and Joey got closer. "You ran off when we met up with that creepy blond guy, and we've been searching all over for you!" The four teens reached them and stopped for breath.  
  
Serena hung her head. "Sorry about that guys. We - um - were looking for the place where the tournament was supposed to start. How was I supposed to know that the whole city was going to be the arena?" Joey chuckled, seeing her embarrassed expression.  
  
"Hey. Don't worry about it Sere. I'm kinda surprised that Kaiba came up with that myself! Hopefully Tea and Tristan will get here soon, so we can get this show on the road."  
  
"So do we just walk all over the city to see if we run into people with Millennium items then?" Yugi asked. "That could probably take along time. Look at all the duelists who signed up for the tournament!" He waved his arm, gesturing at the crowds of people who fill the streets.  
  
"Don't worry Yugi," Serena told him. "If I know anything at all about Chaos, it's that it can't stay hidden for long. I can't feel a trace of its power right now, but sooner or later it will decide to come out, and I'll definitely be able to tell when that happens. In the mean time." she turned towards a growing crowd of people to their left and grinned. "It looks like there's a duel going on. Maybe I can try out my new cards."  
  
"Shall we see who is dueling then?"  
  
"Why certainly good sir," Serena said with a mock bow. Still holding hands, the two pushed through the crowd, with Yami glaring at anyone who might decide to push back. 'With so many of my friends cards in this deck, I'm certain to get at least one.' She thought. 'Hopefully the one I get will have some sort of type advantage.'  
  
When the two reached the front of the ring of people, Serena sized up the two duelists. One of them, a brown haired teen, had just lost, and was kneeling on the ground looking crushed as he handed over his locator cards and the rarest card in his deck. The other, a strange aqua haired teen was gloating over his victory, and challenging everyone in the vicinity who wanted to duel.  
  
"Who wants to be next to challenge my psychic powers?"  
  
Serena smiled softly and held up her deck. 'He doesn't have psychic powers. I've been around magic and supernatural forces enough to tell. He is doing something to cheat. So maybe I should expose the cheater?' She stepped forward. "I will duel you," she told him.  
  
The aqua haired teen smirked. "You? You're just a rookie! I would have heard of you before if you were a true duelist! You won't be able to match up to my psychic powers anyway." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Are you sure you want to lose to me?"  
  
"You don't have psychic powers Esper." Serena told him calmly. "And cheating is not the way to win a duel. You may know nothing about me, but I know all about you. Shall we duel to see who is the true rookie here?"  
  
Esper frowned at the insult. "Fine, but I won't go easy on you just because you're a rookie. It's time to duel!" Drawing five cards, he slid two into the slots on his dueling system. "I'll start by playing this card face down, and my slime warrior in attack mode. [A-850 D-900] " A green humanoid blob of slime with gray armor and a sword popped up in front of him.  
  
Serena nodded. "Okay then, I'll play Saber the dark fox ninja [A-700 D- 1000] in attack mode as well, and I'll on this card, magic shuriken to increase his strength by 300 points. Lastly, I'll place a card face down too." A black upright fox with silver tipped ears and a blue bandana around its neck appeared in front of Serena, and was equipped with a silver shuriken.  
  
"You are too predictable. A rookie just like I said." Esper smirked. "Only a beginner would power up a weak monster like that on their first turn. I bet you don't even have any stronger monsters to attack me with."  
  
"If that is what you want to think, then very well. Are you going to take you turn?"  
  
"Fine then, but now you'll see what you got yourself into when you challenged me." Throwing his arms straight out to the sides, he closed his eyes and threw his head back. "Oh powerful spirits of the four planes! Show me all!"  
  
While most of the crowd except Serena's friends watched in amazement, Serena only snickered. "You really think that's going to impress me Esper? You're not calling on any spirits at all! And you're going to have to do better than your little tricks to beat me!"  
  
"Well then, should I tell you what cards you're holding?" He grinned, trying to psych her out.  
  
"I could really care less if you know what cards I'm holding Esper," She yawned, looking bored. "You don't know what half of them do, or the strategy I have. Can we get down do business, and you can take your turn?"  
  
Her opponent drew a card. "Okay then, I'll sacrifice my Slime Warrior, and bring out Shingei!" [A-1500 D-1700] (I don't remember the name, but pretend it's that weird cyborg type monster he used in the show against Joey) "Shingei, attack Saber!" The cyborg shot a blast out of its metal covered mouth straight towards Serena's ninja fox.  
  
"Shadow concealment!" the card that Serena had placed face down, rose to show a picture of a black fog which covered her monster and hid it from the attack. "Looks like I won that round Esper! My shadow concealment card can only be played on ninja type creatures, and allows them to dodge all attacks against them once."  
  
"What kind of card is that?! It doesn't exist in the whole game!"  
  
"I told you Esper, you don't know what half of these cards do. Whatever you're doing to see them won't help you, because they're special editions. They're one of a kind!" She drew another card.  
  
'The perfect card,' she thought. "Now Esper, I know Saber isn't strong enough to beat your Shingei, but I've one that is powerful enough. Would you like to see it?" Before he could answer, she placed it in a slot. "I'll sacrifice my Saber, and play the Sovereign of Silence!"  
  
The dark fox shimmered out of existence, to be replaced with a Hotaru look- alike. She was dressed in a black dress, a replica of the one from her princess form. Black wings stretched out from her back, which remain uncovered by the dress, and her tiara, which she normally wore as Sailor Saturn was upon her forehead. Instead of the pale gem in the center however, it had a glowing purple symbol of Saturn.  
  
/Hello Serena/ she heard in her mind.  
  
Serena's eyes widened, though she tried to not show any of her shock. 'Hotaru. . ."  
Silver Angel: Well how was that? I hope you guys liked it! Just a quick note, if Serena seemed out of character at all in that chapter, remember that she is 400 years old now, and has been Cosmos, and /alone/ for most of that time.  
  
Please Review! I love your comments! ^_^ 


	11. Chapter 11: Gathering Strength

Silver Angel: Chapter 11 is up! Hurray for me! I've been a little worried lately about this story, because of that long bout of writers block. I really want to be able to finish this story! Okay, a few notes before we begin.  
  
*Potential OOC-ness for several characters, including Serena, Yami Bakura (aka Kage), and Malik/Yami Malik. Serena's been alone for several hundred years, Kage has amnesia, and I don't know much about Malik. He's also having a ^_^ personality conflict.  
  
*No matter what you may think, I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or Sailor Moon, or any characters or situations there from. I do however; own my imaginary plushies, and muses by the same names! Ha! So there!  
  
Yugi: Yeah! So there! ^___^  
Chapter 11: Gathering Strength  
  
/Hello Serena/ she heard in her mind.  
  
Serena's eyes widened, though she tried not to show any of her shock. 'Hotaru.' Her friend. how had the card spoken to her? She had had in made in Hotaru's likeness, as she had will all the others, but - this card had spoken to her! And it hadn't just spoken to her either. *Hotaru* had spoken to her - for it *had* been her friend who had spoken.  
  
'But Hotaru was dead. No - not just dead: he star seed was gone! Absorbed by min so that I could become Cosmos, and be able to defeat Chaos. How could she have come back? And if she has, does this mean I won't be Cosmos anymore? Has my power already depleted, and I just don't know it?'  
  
She winced slightly at the thought. Serena was not power hungry in any way shape or form - the world would have been destroyed long ago if she had been. Still, that constant warm glow of quicksilver within her was a reassurance that the next time a problem arose; she would be able to protect her friends. She would not have to see them fall one by one due to her own inability.  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
*'Please,' Serena whispered. 'Please Uranus, don't leave me! I need you! I need all of you. I don't - I don't think I can do this on my own!' The Scout in question barely heard her. Her short Sandy blond hair was streaked with blood and grime, and her blue eyes stared upwards at a point somewhere beyond Serena's face.  
  
'Is it too much to ask for peace?' Serena wondered as she watched her friend struggling to draw in new breath. Is it too much to hope that we can wake up in the morning, and not have to grab our communicators because there might be another attack? All this time, I thought I was fighting for love and justice, but - that isn't it at all. It was always, each and every time, for my friends. Without them, I don't know how I can do this!' Uranus shuddered with her next breath, turning darkening blue eyes towards Sailor Moon.  
  
'S-sorry kitten.' The elder scout choked out, her last was broken off with a cough. 'We never - wanted to betray you, but - ' she coughed again, a small tremble coming from each of her limbs as her body succumbed to the fit. '-e didn't see -ny other choice to save e-rth.' Her body shook with the onset of another spasm, but it never came. Every muscle stiffened abruptly, and then relaxed, a tiny sigh parted her lips, as she finally stopped living from loss of her star seed. She had lasted longer than most, able to gasp out a tiny message to her princess, even without the power of her soul. Stubbornness had not been enough to save her however - had not been enough to save any of them.  
  
'Noooo!' She screamed, cry arching up into space as another of her friends died.  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
Memories pushed themselves mercilessly past all of the barriers she had erected. An image of the Starlight's bodies being consumed by blue flame; Kakyuu transforming into a Sailor Scout to fight, only to be stabbed through the back soon after. She clenched her fists, trying to drive her uncooperative mind away from the memories, and taking refuge with the voice at the back of her mind that was nagging her to finish the duel.  
  
There was a quiet giggle in her mind, and Serena looked up to see the 'Sovereign of Silence' with a small smile playing about her lips. It looked decidedly out of place when given her rather forbidding appearance with the black wings and wickedly sharp Glaive.  
  
/You know Cosmos-sama; you should listen to that voice more often. You may have gotten your homework done if you had. /  
  
Still goggling at the reality of her friend, and trying to forget the pain of their last battle, Serena snapped to attention, her eyes narrowing at the comment. 'Why you. You're going to regret that Firefly.' Focusing her attention back on the duel, she looked at Esper who seemed to be *just* beginning to recover from his shock.  
  
'To bad he's gonna have another little something to recover from now,' she though, with an uncharacteristic amount of fiendish glee. "Sovereign of Silence, attack with Death Reborn Revolution!" The smile on Hotaru's lips grew wider at the order, and her eyes turned into violet chips of ice as she raised her Glaive, the sigil of Saturn glowing brightly on her forehead.  
  
Though this was only a duel Monsters game, still the very air seemed to thrum with power as the 'Sovereign' unleashed her most devastating attack. With an emphatic 'crack!' she slammed the pole end of the Glaive into the ground, where it shot forth purple ribbons of power that ripped into Esper's Shingei, tearing it to pieces, dissolving it, and all other things at once.  
  
When it was all over, Esper knelt on the ground, his remaining cards slipping from limp fingers. "You - you did all that, with one creature? Not even a magic card." The crowds walked away from the site of the recent duel, a few muttering about 'anti-climaxes', and blue haired duelist stared forward.  
  
Serena sighed. Esper really wasn't that bad, she knew. She felt rather guilty about humiliating him like that, but still, she wouldn't have went easy on someone she knew was a cheater anyway. "I guess that just means you have to practice some more they huh? Maybe without using tricks this time?"  
  
Her opponent sighed, and held out his Shingei and Locater cards. Deciding not to say anymore, Serena walked back to her own group of friends who were mostly staring at her with wide eyes. The only one who wasn't, was Yami. Instead, he was smiling at her, a soft look in his eyes, which she immediately understood and returned.  
  
"Good job." he whispered, giving her a small hug. Serena could tell that he didn't often make outward displays of affection given his past, and it warmed her to think that he cared about her enough to do so. Turning around, she caught sight of Hotaru, who had remained after the battle, and had obvious happiness dancing in her eyes.  
  
"Everyone, I don't know exactly how it happened, but I would like to introduce you to Hotaru, also known as Sailor Saturn."  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
'So this is Bandit Keith.' Malik smiled as he looked at his newest servant.' The rather scruffy looking man's eyes were glazed, the natural blue color darker and vacant. A black robe covered him from head to toe, and upon a mental command from Malik, he raised the hood so that it covered his face and hid his identity.  
  
'Yes, it's always nice to get a new mind slave, and this one should do quite well. With a few modifications to his deck, he should be able to beat the Pharaoh. That fact that they used to know each other should only unbalance the spirit. Finally, I will be able to get my hands on his Millennium Puzzle.' His eyes narrowed as he thought of 'that' person, but he smirked as his thoughts continued on to his victory, and what he would do afterward.  
  
'Isis my sister, I wonder if your Tauk is allowing you to see this? Will you be there to witness my triumph when the Pharaoh's reign at last comes to an end?' For a second, the look on his face seemed to shift, slight panic taking the place of coldness in his lilac eyes. A moment only, and then the change was gone as if it had never happened.  
  
Malik had heard the cry of 'leave my sister out of this', however, and made a mental vow to demonstrate his. disappointment in his 'Hikari's' weakness. He grimaced at the term he had used, though it was the only possible one to give - besides perhaps 'vessel'.  
  
'A pity your loyalties had to move elsewhere sister.' An expression of disgust swept over his face, and the few pedestrians outside the alley who had looked in his direction quickly tuned away and backed off. 'It would have been nice to have the power of your Tauk at my disposal - and now I just have the extra work of having to take it from you.'  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
Kaiba cursed loudly and kicked the thick metal door of the room he was locked in. "It's just my luck that each person with plans to take over the world seems to think it's funny to toy with me!" A feeling of satisfaction flowed through him as he saw the small dent he had made. The sweet feeling didn't last long however.  
  
'Mokuba.' His younger brother's smiling face floated into his mind, and a thread of worry wormed through him. Kaiba remembered all too well what had happened the last time - really only a day or two ago. He remembered sneaking into the cell his brother was being held in; promising to get the boy out - and then having to watch in horror when he saw his brothers blank soulless eyes staring out at him from underneath spiky black bangs.  
  
'If that freak even touches my brother I'll.' he let the worded forms of his thoughts trail off as he envisioned choking the almost effeminate platinum haired boy. Combined with worry for his brother, even visions of his bulging lilac eyes made Kaiba smile in anticipation. He wasn't all *that* violent naturally, but when it came to his brother - and being locked up like a hamster in a cage - ' he growled as anger took him once more.  
  
'Stupid!' He told himself once more. 'Not only did you allow yourself to be taken by that freak, but also now you're letting yourself get all emotional. That is in no way going to help you get out there so you can pound that Marik -or Malik, or whatever he's called into the ground!' He gave another feral smile at the thought, but had soon satisfied himself that he was sufficiently calm, and began to look around the room for some way of escape.  
  
"Lets see now." he muttered, examining the drawers set below the counter and above it into the wall. Upon testing them, he discovered that most were locked, however one or two had been left open. Pulling open each one, he checked in them, and allowed a smirk to cross his face when he saw a tiny brass key. It wasn't the key to the door.  
  
Frustrated, he glared at the door, silently willing it to open, and knowing it would do no good. He was quite surprised then, when the door swung open on its own, revealing a black haired girl around his age behind it. She wore rather odd clothes that had a distinctly Egyptian feel to them. "You are Seto Kaiba?" He didn't reply immediately, but she seemed to take this as a positive answer. "Good. I have a proposition for you." He stared at her, considering.  
  
~'Why do you insist on not trusting others Kaiba? Sooner or later you will have no choice.'~  
  
He remembered Serena saying this. At the time it had only irritated him further. Magic? And friends? What good had they ever done him? Growing up in the orphanage, the only one he could rely upon had been Mokuba, just as all his little brother had was him. Magic, miracles. none of it existed, or they wouldn't have grown up the way they had. At the same time, Kaiba couldn't help but trust this young woman. Something about the look in her eyes, and a familiarity about her presence. It felt as if there were something he was missing, but he somehow knew that he could trust her.  
  
'And however much you hate it, you felt the same way with Yugi, as well as that strange girl who kept talking about magic.' The little voice in his head was forced back quickly, but not before it could do its damage. It was true! He trusted Yugi, and that blond girl, and now this stranger. 'Darn it! Why am I doing this?'  
  
Kaiba stepped forward, a quick nod, accepting. "Fine. What was it you wanted to say?"  
  
~ ~ ~ ~  
  
End Chapter 11  
  
~ ~ ~ ~  
  
Silver Angel: Yeah! I got another chapter out! And, I feel like I'm starting to get some of my inspiration back too!  
  
Yugi: Yeah, we finally have some plot development! I was wondering when that would happen!  
  
Silver Angel: ::sniffles:: I know, but I can't help it if my muses are working against me! Why didn't you help out more?!  
  
Yugi: Ermm. ::backs away:: Review please! 


	12. Interlude 1: Darkness Take Me

Silver Angel: So many reviews for the last chapter! I feel like dancing! Thank you to everyone! Check below for replies!  
  
nanami: Thank you! Hopefully you're not too frustrated with my eratic updates! ^_^;  
  
chibipluto1us: Thanks for the reviews. Did this come soon enough? Probably not. :sighs:  
  
Cosmos StarGoddess: Yes this story is still going! Thanks for the review!  
  
Ahknee/Kitteen: Really? You're putting me in the book of world records? ^_^ Yay! Thanks for the review! I'm sorry if you had to wait!  
  
Kage-shadow-of-darkness: Yep, I've finally updated! And Hota's real now. MOST of the others will be coming back too, though I haven't decided on the order yet. If things go according to the outline I have planned for next chapter, then you'll get to see more of Hotaru, and lots of Yugi/Yami. Is that good? Oh yeah, I hope you like my Malik action that I've written for this chapter!  
  
Devils Little Doll: Yeah, Hotaru's one of my favorite characters too. As for the pairings unless I have any significant changes of plans, she most likely will be with Malik - but you'll have to wait to see how I do that! Mwaahaahaa!  
  
Lady-Tomoyo: As far as the other senshi coming back, that will mostly be explained in the next chapter, but I will let you know that there will be at least one - maybe more - important exception.  
  
Angelgirl: You think my story is amazing? I'm so happy you like it! I'm also really glad you think the last chapter was one of my best! I put a lot of work into editing it so it was better! Thanks for the review!  
  
Ss JK: You know, that review you sent to me really made my day! I'm so happy that I could change your opinion like that, and that you think my story is that good! I personally am not so sure, but you've made me so happy! ^_^  
  
PerscomChu: So you like Saturn's attacks then? That's good! I actually haven't really seen that much of the second season of Yu-Gi-Oh - but I was a total fanatic during the first season. ^_^  
  
Aira^o^: I like sweet Yami too! ^_^ ::goes all dreamy:: Thanks for you review!  
  
Sailor Temptress: This is one of your favorite fics right now?! Really?! ^_^ Thanks for the review! I'll try to send out another chapter soon!  
  
Gema J. Gall: Yeah, I was watching a Yu-Gi-Oh episode the other night, and I have to agree. He's not my favorite, but Kaiba is definitely cool! Especially when Mokuba's in trouble and you can see the softy underneath! ^_^  
  
FireSenshi: Thanks for the review! Here's your update! ^_^  
  
Silver Angel:: Anyways, after that rather lengthy reply session, here finally is chapter 11. I was watching a Yu-Gi-Oh episode where Malik was pretending to be a nice guy, and I realized, that when he's not acting evil, Malik is totally hot! Well, he's hot when he's evil, but he's so much more huggable when he's nice! ^_^ Anyways, here's a short interlude, showing some of his past, and this chapter goes out to all Malik lovers! ^_^  
Interlude 1: Darkness Take Me  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
The sheets underneath him had once been a pristine white; crisp and smoothly tucked into the sides of the large canopy bed. Now, however, they were damp and stale with sweat, and lay rumpled underneath his small body. Every few minutes, a whimper managed to escape him, no matter how hard he tried to keep his pain locked inside. It really was too much for a small boy of ten to bear, though he didn't know that. To him, it was normal. His family had been the guardians of the Pharaoh's memory for generations, and ever since he had been old enough to understand, Malik had been told of how the guardianship of the Pharaohs memory would be passed on to him.  
  
What his father never told him, was how he would be the keeper of the Pharaoh's memory. On his tenth birthday, Malik had woken up excited and happy. Birthday's always seemed to take so long to come, and the past year since he turned nine, he had been especially eager for it to come again.  
  
In a normal situation, he would have been excited, but this year, Malik was nearly bouncing off the walls. One night soon after he had turned nine, he had by chance gotten up in the middle of the night to get a drink of water. As he was creeping back to his room through the darkened hallways, voices had drifted his way, enticing him with all the delicious secrets that a boy of his age could want.  
  
After moving closer, the platinum haired boy had found that the owners of the two voices were his father, and a business associate who occasionally came over to discuss 'things he would learn when he was older'. Of course, after realizing that this must be what the two were discussing now, Malik couldn't help but give in to his curiosity and try to learn them a little early. After all, his father didn't have to know, so what could it hurt?  
  
"So you will do it on the boy's tenth birthday Risam?" his father's friend had asked. The man had always disturbed Malik. Something to do with the way his oily voice seemed to hang in the air and seep into every crevice no doubt.  
  
"Yes," his father had answered. "In a year, the boy shall be ready to take up his duties." At that point, Malik had leaned forward, trying to hear a little clearer what those duties would be. Alas, luck had not been with him, and the smooth wooden floorboards had creaked underneath his feet causing his father and the man to look up at the disturbance. Eyes widening, the nine-year-old boy ran back down the hallway to his room diving onto his bed and pretending to sleep, hoping desperately that the two men would guess that he had heard them.  
  
Ever since that night, he had been excited for his next birthday. Finally he would be grown up enough for his father to pass the family responsibility to him! He wouldn't let his father down! At least. that was what he had thought. In his childish innocence, he had believed that his father would make some sort of special presentation. At the end of his birthday party, he would get up and make a speech, sounding very formal, and pass some scrolls on to Malik, saying that he was now the keeper of the Pharaoh's memory.  
  
Things are rarely as simple as a child's mind believes however. There had been no party - just a quiet family dinner, and wishes of a happy birthday from his parents, sister, and a few of the servants, like Rishid, who had always taken special care of him. Malik began to believe that perhaps his father had changed his mind. In the previous year, had he done something to make his father thing he wasn't mature enough?  
  
But then after dinner. his father had requested to see him in private. The ten-year-old's eyes had practically glowed with anticipation as he followed his father to his office, where Risam Ishtar and his friend had pinned him down and carved the Pharaoh's memory into his back.  
  
This brought his mind back to the present finally, dredging up from depths of his memories, his father's shouts to be stronger, and to take the pain like a man. He had barely been conscious when his father had picked him up and dropped him gracelessly back on the bed in his room. Malik hadn't moved since that time all those hours ago.  
  
A tear fell silently down his face, rolling off the edge of his chin to fall onto the sheet and absorb into it in a tiny wet patch. It had hurt so much. Not just the physical pain, but a pain in his heart that came back every time he remembered the look on his father's face. His father telling him to be stronger. Suggesting that maybe he had made a mistake, and Malik wasn't ready for the responsibility he was being given.  
  
The child sobbed, burying his face into his pillow to block any sounds. He had to lay on his stomach, so as not to aggravate the sharp stabbing feelings that remained in his back. He wasn't good enough - but he *Was* wanted. At the time that it hurt the most, he had felt another presence with him - an angry presence that felt so much like himself, and yet so different. It had shouted at him to 'Be Silent!', and Malik had. Stunned at the violence in the voice that sounded so much like his own, the boy had stopped his cries of pain, all sounds subsiding to only the smallest of occasional whimpers.  
Silver Angel: Wow. Did I write that? It seems rather out of tone with some of the rest of the story, but - I like it. I've tried to find out as much as I could about Malik's past so that I could write his character better, and it seems to me that he mustn't have had that great of a childhood, if his father was the type to do that to him. More interludes will be scattered throughout the story, showing occasional bits of Malik's past, and maybe other characters too. ^_^  
  
Announcer's Voice: On the next chapter of The Angel of Light: Hotaru is back? For real? But what about the other scouts? Serena finds out that it is possible to bring them back too, but with an important exception. "It merged with the planet hime. We can't bring anyone back without their crystal." And what has happened to Yami and Yugi?  
  
Stay tuned for Chapter 12: What has been Lost.  
  
Please Review! ^_^ 


	13. Chapter 12: What Has Been Lost

Ghost Whisper: In case anyone here hasn't noticed. I've changed my pen name. I'm no longer Silver Angel, due to the new rule on ff.net about original author pen names. I didn't want to be Silver Angel7. *gives computer dirty look*  
  
Anyways, after a long period of silence, I have returned with the next chapter of this fic, due to popular demand. I was thinking about re- writing it, because I found myself dissatisfied with some things, but. I just couldn't leave you guys hanging any longer. Sorry about that!  
  
Thanks to all my reviewers - I didn't list you here, but you know who you are, and you have my eternal gratitude for all of your support. ^_^  
  
- - - Just a quick note here. The Voting Is OVER. Please, if you'd like to review me, I'm eternally grateful for it, and it gives me no end of happiness to know that you care enough about my story to review, but I'm not longer taking votes for couples. I've decided on a Yami/Serena, and pretty heavily implied it already, so I don't want to change my mind now. If you're not happy about that - sorry, but them's the cookies handed out. I may however, write other stories in the future with those couples.  
  
Chapter 12: What Has Been Lost  
  
A glow concealed the body of the girl with raven coloured wings, and when it receded, she was dressed in a simple black turtleneck sweater, and a dark navy jean skirt. She was no longer the Sovereign of Silence.  
  
Hotaru ran forward as fast as she could. Her small form seemed to barely touch the concrete of the road, as she moved lightly forward to embrace Serena in the strongest hug that she could manage. Given their similarity in size, Serena barely even had to lean over to hear Hotaru's whisper in her ear.  
  
"I'm so sorry Serena," she said quietly. "I'm sorry that none of us were able to protect you as we should have. I'm sorry that you had to be alone for so long." Tears sparkled in the corners of her violet eyes, which she had shut tightly, as if she feared the reaction of the girl in front of here.  
  
Serena was facing away from the rest of the group, her face buried in Hotaru's dark hair, hiding her large smile and the tears that were streaming unashamedly down her face. "You're back," she whispered, voice catching in a sob. "You're really back - and that's all that matters." She cried quietly for a few minutes, and Yami just barely refrained from going up and trying to comfort her, not wanting to interrupt the reunion of friends.  
  
When she had finished, Serena gave one last sniffle and stepped back, holding her friend at arms length. She gave a watery smile, which Hotaru returned, and then pulled a stern expression onto her features. "Hotaru Tomoe," she began, sounding like a parent about to lecture a misbehaving child. "Would you please explain to me what has happened? Why were you gone for all those years, and yet you can come back now?"  
  
The dark haired girl lowered her eyes to the ground, downcast. "I - I'm sorry Serena. We all are. If there had been any other way, we - we would have taken it! None of us wanted to leave you. You're our princess! But when we fought Chaos . . . The only way it could have been defeated was to give you our powers. Our bodies were dying anyway, so the only way it could be done was to - to merge souls."  
  
Her voice broke it the end, and she bit her lip, fearing the reaction of the golden haired girl who stood judgement in front of her. She could tell that Serena wasn't happy about what had happened in their last battle together. The scouts had promised that they would always stay together, and when they had left her like that - even if it *had* been the only way to save her - well, it felt like betrayal of the worst sort. There was pain on both sides; from the betrayer, and the betrayed.  
  
Serena sighed, and an accepting smile came to her face, immediately draining some of the tension from the air. "It's okay 'Taru. I understand about. about doing what needs to be done. I can't blame you for what happened - no matter how much it hurts."  
  
Joy lit up the Scout of Saturn's face, and she leapt forward once more to embrace the girl who was her leader - and moreover, was like an older sister to her. "Thank you," she murmured, before pulling away and beginning her story once more.  
  
"How we came back . . . I'm not exactly sure the way it worked Serena. You'd have to ask Pluto to get the specifics I think, but it has to do with the way your powers grew, and the fact then we weren't dead when we voluntarily sacrificed our bodies to combine the power of our souls with you. Somehow, because you were Cosmos, your star crystal began taking on the powers that ours originally had to lend you. Now your soul can use these powers on its own, and I guess that meant we were no longer needed. The only thing we were waiting for was a way to separate - and you gave me that Serena, when you called me."  
  
~ ~  
  
Yami watched the exchange in silence, intrigued by the small girl that Serena seemed so happy to see. 'She looks very much like Saturn,' he mused. 'I wonder - was this perhaps what she and Pluto were talking about in that dream?'  
  
He crossed his arms over his chest, feeling the heavy weight of his version of the Millennium Puzzle hanging there. The gold pyramid was cold, but seemed to pulse with energy - almost as if were reacting to the girls in front of him. 'But which one is it? Or is it reacting to both of them?'  
  
As he watched, Serena smile grew wider and wider, until he could safely classify it as a grin. He couldn't hear what was being said, as they were speaking quietly, and still several metres away, but he imagined that it must have something to do with being able to bring her friends back. 'That's the only thing I can think of that would make her that happy,' he thought, feeling a small glow as he saw her eyes brighten in a way that lit up her whole face.  
  
"Yami,"  
  
The ancient spirit turned to look at his light half, who was gazing at the scene before them in confusion. "Hmmm?"  
  
"Do you know who that girl is?" Yugi questioned. He was also fingering his Millennium Puzzle just as Yami had been a minute ago. "I mean, she came out of a card just like Serena did and all. That doesn't really surprise me I guess, but the Millennium Puzzle started reacting when she did. It feels . . . weird. Kind of tingly is the best way I can put it."  
  
"She is a friend of Serena's." Yami said quietly. "And she holds magic of a sort that seems familiar - though I don't know precisely how." He failed to mention the dream he'd had, deciding that at this point, it wasn't important. "Perhaps the Puzzle recognizes the magic - or maybe it has something to do with Serena summoning the girl as a duel monster, as I summoned her, using the Millennium Puzzle."  
  
Yugi nodded. There was a definite possibility in both of those theories.  
  
"That was pretty weird," Joey commented. I didn't see ya Summon Serena in your duel with Pegasus Yugi, but the way she was just summoned like the holograms are - and then becomes real just as fast - " He shook his head back and forth. "It's just too crazy. And I can't believe all this magic stuff we got caught up in recently. I mean - I know you've had the puzzle for a while Yug, but still - I never even knew about Yami until a few days ago."  
  
A chuckle could be heard from both Yugi and Yami at Joey's confession. Even Bakura smiled slightly, though it seemed not quite so amused as it was ironic. Kage looked confused at the other's humoured mood, and turned questioning eyes to Bakura. The white haired teen looked at his twin and shrugged. "It doesn't matter," he said quietly. "I'll explain later."  
  
The conversation came to an end at that point, as the two girls were now walking back towards the group. "You look happy," Yami told Serena. His reply was a wide smile, and an impulsive hug from the blond girl.  
  
"I am," she said. "I thought they were lost - that I'd never see them again - but my friends can come back!" Behind her, Yami saw a tightening of the new girls expression. There was something else, he realized. Something the girl hadn't told Serena yet.  
  
"There is . . . on thing Serena." Hotaru began. She lifted a hand and placed it on Serena's shoulder, causing the blond girl to turn around and face her. "Darien - " At this she faltered, unsure of how to continue.  
  
"What about Darien?" Serena's voice seemed . . .blank . . . as though she were expecting the worst . . . or perhaps she already knew the worst, and weren't sure what to make of it.  
  
"Our soul crystals merged with yours in the final battle. It is why we can now be brought back. But Darien. . . Earth still held life Serena, so it must always have an avatar - a position that Darien filled. When he died, in order for Earth to have an avatar his crystal merged with the planet. I'm sorry . . ."  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
To Be Continued.  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
Ghost Whisper: I am extremely extremely sorry for keeping you guys waiting for so long. I didn't want to! I even had most of this chapter planned out! However, I'm in Grade 12 now, so I have evil Midterms and Diploma exams that are very important, plus many other extra obligations. To compound that, I have more projects going on at once than I can shake a stick at - only about half my stuff is on this site.  
  
Once again, I'm sorry for this taking so long. I am determined to finish this story, but I don't know for sure when the next chapter will be out. Hopefully, the period won't be quite so extended this time. ^_^ 


	14. Chapter 13: Unknown Quantities

Ghost Whisper: *Dancing* Huh? Oh - I guess you guys can't tell by looking at my stats on the site, but. [Drumroll] I have 200 reviews!  
  
Yugi: You should have seen the way she was dancing earlier *leans forward out of Ghost's earshot* She made such a fool of herself.  
  
Ghost Whisper: Yugi, I'm hurt! And here I had such great things planned for you in this chapter! '_ ' Anyways, replies to reviewers:  
  
s() - You understand! *cries* Thank you, thank you!  
  
Bunnychu - Well a Serena/Yami is pretty much a set thing, but if you send me some info on Duke (I never got to see those episodes), then I might be able to work something out for other pairings. I think about the other suggestions, though I'm not sure on anything yet though. ^_^  
  
SerinityRules: Yeah, I thought so too. but be forewarned, there will be plot twists in the future.  
  
Shaiala Rialle: I think you've hit the nail on the head about Serena's feelings there. Thanks for the review! ^_^  
  
Ahknee/Kiteen: I'm sorry I kept you waiting so long! Although, I am happy you remembered me, and enjoyed the chapter! *Hands chocolate bar* @_@ Oh no. I didn't just make you more hyper did I?  
  
Prophetess of Hearts: Yeah that was part of my reasoning behind the new development. but you never know what will be around the corner! Bwaahaahaa! ^_^  
  
Gema J. Gall: I'm sorry! *Whimpers* I couldn't help it! Writers Block *coughlazinesscough* just tends to sneak up on you! The rest of the scouts will begin coming back too, so please put up with me! ^_^  
  
Henio: I will never make a chapter that is only 20 words, don't worry! I have some standards. Thanks for the review!  
  
Sakura30: Thank you so much for the encouragement. I have a problem about stopping thinking about my stories - they tend to sneak up on me. Just the other night, I was about to fall asleep, when I shot out of bed and wrote half this chapter. Maybe it's a good thing I think about it so much? Thank you once again!  
  
Snow Stalker1: Midterms should be sent to the fiery abyss from whence they were spawned! *Maniacal laughter* But hopefully since there over, things might get a bit better for me, and this story. Except for finals coming up. !_! Thanks for the good wishes!  
  
Angelgirl10: Yes, I'm sorry for my sins! I repent to all Darien lovers! All I can say to justify myself is. it had to be done. But I love Darien too! Rest assured, there will be no bashing of him at least. Sorry about the typo - they like to make my life miserable. Thanks for the review!  
  
Delphine Pryde: Yeah, I went with Yami too - but I have something special planned for Malik! ^_^  
  
Chibi Pluto: Here's the update! I hope it's worthwhile. ^_^  
  
Zaeria: Cool name! Did you know you're my 200th reviewer? *Throws confetti* Here. A set of Yu-Gi-Oh plushies, with the bishies of your choice ^_^ A meeting between Rae and Kaiba? That's an interesting thought. I'll have to consider that. Oh the possibilities! ^_^ By the way. I would pay attention to those inklings. They're very useful, knowledgeable little things.  
  
Chapter 13: Unknown Quantities  
  
'Merged with the planet.I'm sorry hime.'  
  
Hotaru's words echoed through her head with an awful finality, and Serena gazed forward at the greenery of the park, not really noticing it. The wood from the bench she was sitting on sported a rough patch that she stroked her fingers across absently, until a sliver brought her back to the present. She was looking into concerned violet eyes.  
  
"Serena?"  
  
She smiled sadly at Yugi. He really was so innocent - he had seen his fair share of troubles, she knew, but underneath it all, he managed to cling to a certain naiveté. It reminded her - oddly enough - of herself, back when she had been Sailor Moon. Back when she had always been ready to believe the best of everyone, and any situation.  
  
"Who was Darien?" His tone was uncertain, as though he was warring with himself over what he wanted her answer to be.  
  
"Darien. was my boyfriend - my fiancée, actually. In one of my last major battles, he was killed along with all of the other Sailor Scouts - my friends, like Hotaru." She waited to see his reaction, and was relieved to note that he didn't ask questions, only nodded. "With Hotaru back, I had though - well, I'm sure you can guess." He voice became softer and softer, until she finally trailed to a halt.  
  
Yugi looked troubled, and he fingered the version of the Millennium Puzzle that hung around his neck. " I guess it must be hard," he stated quietly. "I know - my parents disappeared years ago. I hardly remember them now, but every time someone asks about them. It just reminds me of something I missed out on."  
  
The spiky haired boy climbed up onto the bench beside her. "I used to wonder. what it would be like to have someone who care for me no matter what - I didn't have any real friends you know - and then - I met Yami, and I finally figured out how important it is to have people who are a part of your life like that." He looked at her understandingly. "When we were split apart. it's like I lost that all over again, only this time, I was old enough to understand what it felt like."  
  
Serena placed a hand on his shoulder. "But Yami's right here. Maybe you're not bound together by your souls anymore, but you still have each other."  
  
"Exactly!" Serena drew back in surprise at Yugi's vehement reply. "We still have each other - and you do to! Maybe you can't talk to him like you used to - Yami and I can't now either - but if his soul merged with the planet, than can't you say, easier than anyone else who's lost someone important to them, that he's still with you? Can't you say that he's all around you, and hears what you say, even if only in part?"  
  
Yugi didn't mention the other person on his mind. 'What does this mean?' he wondered. 'If she loved this Darien so much - I wonder if she even realizes how much *He* cares for her.'  
  
Serena's eyes watered as she took in what Yugi had said. It didn't dull the pain. Maybe nothing even could - not even time - but it did make it easier to accept what had happened. She threw her arms around Yugi's small form. "Thank you," she whispered, allowing tears to finally fall.  
  
Yugi looked down at the blond girl in his arms, his eyes wide. This hadn't exactly been the reaction he expected. Not too far away, Yami leaned against a tree, and the two 'twins' made eyes contact. The uncertain look in his other half's eyes made Yugi bite his lip worriedly.  
  
This wasn't the outcome he had wanted at all.  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
Bakura had been watching Serena for sometime now. He certainly identified with Yugi, who had seemed very startled at the blond girl's sudden actions. He would have expected Yami to be the one in her embrace, and not his lighter half. Yugi, for all he had apparently been trying to cheer Serena up, looked quite uncomfortable with his current situation.  
  
"Do you think she'll be okay?" Hotaru whispered quietly from her position kneeling on the grass. "I try to be there for her - all of us Scouts do - but we're so different. I'm not always sure if I'm telling her something she should here, or something she wants to hear. I'm afraid that I'll just end up hurting her more."  
  
Bakura wondered on something she had said. 'I try' - not 'I tried to be there for her'. How could they try if they were - for all intents and purposes - dead? But then again, maybe he was just reading too much into the comment. Maybe the small dark haired girl was speaking in present tense because she hadn't felt the length of time she had been 'dead'.  
  
Hotaru was watching the blond haired girl again, her eyes sad.  
  
"Maybe you're trying too hard." He suggested, making the girl look up at him curiously. "You're friends, right? Even if you can't tell, you're probably saying the right thing - and if you're not, she'll understand that you were only trying to help her. She might be hurt, but she'll understand."  
  
"Maybe," she whispered.  
  
The white haired boy smiled at her. "Opposites can get along too," he told her. "And you have to have something in common, or you'd only be allies, not the good friends I can tell you are."  
  
Hotaru looked at him carefully, judging the earnest look in his eyes, and the odd feeling she always got from him. Her stare continued so long that Bakura squirmed uncomfortably. "Yeah." her voice was almost too quiet to hear. ".Opposites.' One pale skinned hand lifted up to twirl a lock of short black hair around her finger. "You know a lot about that, don't you?" She gazed meaning fully at Kage, who was staring off into the distance.  
  
Bakura flushed at her knowing look, and turned his eyes downward to study the glass. It wasn't that he disliked Kage, but knowing that his virtual twin had lived thousands of years ago, and then become an insane evil spirit, had not done anything to make it easy to get to know his other half.  
  
"He was infected," Hotaru stated vaguely, her eyes glazed over. "Controlled from the inside out, by a parasite. Forced into action by an unnatural hatred that twisted everything he once was. A spirit, much like you, until he was insane. Chaos can do that to you; twist you until you think your actions are natural. Sometimes. the only way to be healed, is to turn back to the beginning."  
  
He stared at the strange girl, a lock of white hair falling into his eyes, which he neglected to brush away. This was too weird. It was as though she had read Kage's whole history from a book. Even he could not understand the spirit like that!  
  
"His name means shadow, doesn't it?" Bakura nodded, uncertain of what was happening, and she went on. "How fitting. a shadow of what he once was; a shadow of you. Shadows do not have a mind of their own - be careful! But do not forget. They are dark, but created by light. There must always be an obstacle between the two in order for the shadow to exist."  
  
A gleam of purple light flickered in her eyes, before it vanished, and her eyes snapped into focus once more. Her body shook slightly, and Bakura wordlessly handed her the white sweater he had taken off earlier, and had been carrying around.  
  
Hotaru gave him a sunny smiled, and he allowed a small hesitant one to come to his face, though his thoughts were violently tumbling around his head in confusion. Something had just happened - but what? He was now more confused about the situation then ever.  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
Gold was such an interesting color, Yami decided. It was what glinted off his Millennium puzzle in the sunlight, and it was also the color of Serena's hair. A vibrant gold that danced in his mind with all sorts of wordless promises. A promise of warmth and happiness, and that he wouldn't have to be alone.  
  
Gold was the color of greed.  
  
It was the color that reflected in the eyes of robbers whenever they had tried to search the vaults of his father's tomb. It was the color that had had lived with molten fire inside the eyes of the Chaos twisted Kage. It was the color he saw every time he looked at Serena.  
  
Yami was greedy. He couldn't help but want her - couldn't help but love her, whether she was Serena or Cosmos, or the princess that the smaller girl - Hotaru - kept calling her. He looked at her, and realised the light, and life she embodied, even when she was devastated.  
  
Like now. When she was sitting next to Yugi, crying onto his shoulder, with her arms around him in a careless embrace. He couldn't hate the violet-eyed boy - not when he was him, in a sense - but Oh! How it hurt to look at the two of them, and see one who could comfort her, when he could not. His heart seized up, when he saw her crying, and new that he wouldn't be able to tell her the right words to comfort her.  
  
He was too different.  
  
Yami meant dark. Yami was the dark half - the dark soul. He didn't belong with someone so pure, and the very embodiment of light. Just as he couldn't comfort her now, he would never be good enough to deserve her.  
  
But it still hurt, even knowing that he could never have her. That she was better off with someone like Yugi, if she could ever forget about her first love. He could never live up to this Darien - couldn't live up to Yugi - couldn't be enough.  
  
*  
  
"Come boy, stop that foolish crying! You are the Pharaoh! Do not let the people see you like this on the day of your ascension. You are the child of Ra - what would they think, if the divine Pharaoh sat in the procession with red eyes, and a puffy face?"  
  
He sniffled, and rubbed a small hand across the back of his eyes and cheeks, trying to get rid of the tearstains that marred his face. Glaring at the advisor standing in front of him, the five-year-old boy with hair in spikes of gold, crimson, and black, straightened the white linen that hung of his hips in a kilt, and adjusted the broad golden emblem on his chest.  
  
He would act like a Pharaoh! He would, even if he was so young still! It didn't matter, since he ruled by Ra's will - the people would have to listen to him! Even those stupid 'advisors', who whispered behind his back. They walked around in their rich saffron and green robes; shrouded in royal blue and ruby colors. They wouldn't plot against them anymore.  
  
Probably.  
  
No, if he were a good enough Pharaoh - if he lived up to his father's example, then he would be able to convince them to stop! He would not have to worry about being murdered. not as his father had worried. not as his father might have been.  
  
He would be good enough!  
  
*  
  
A small movement out of the corner of Yami's eye attracted his attention, and he pulled his thoughts back to the present and away from the memory that had leapt upon him unbidden.  
  
A man was running down the street, dodging people left and right, until he came upon an old warehouse. Confused, Yami began to follow him, not liking the foreboding feeling that he was getting. As he walked away from his position behind the large tree, he forgot all about the companions he was leaving behind.  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
To Be Continued.  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
Ghost Whisper: Did I confuse anyone with this chapter? All in all, I rather like the way it turned out. And don't worry! Another scout will be coming in soon, and I'll probably have some more of Kaiba, and what is going on with Isis as well.  
  
Coming Soon: "A strong power long forgotten. he exudes suffering. I believe you match him well, though the power you have accessed currently leaves something to be desired. Do we have a deal?" . . . "Please, you can't - you can't take him! I won't let you!" 


	15. Chapter 14: A Deal, With the Devil?

Ghost Whisper: *Mental Wheels Churning* Lets see. I can do this *scribbles on notebook* Oooh! And then I can do this - and that will make this happen - *scribbles frantically. . . Huh? Oh hi people! I'm happy to say that this is the next chapter of the Angel of Light! Yay!  
  
Yugi muse: o.o She's actually working.  
  
Ghost: Yes, I am! And I'm happy to say that I'm not mired in the evil, icky, gross writers block anymore! This story is alive and well - So, you can look below for replies to reviews, or you can scroll further down, and read the next chapter. And even if you didn't review, thank you for reading! This story is dedicated to all of you - without whom, it would have died a premature death. ^_^  
  
~ ~  
  
Zaeria: You're wonderful, you know that? I loved your review! It made me so happy! Yes, those inklings are smart little things. I'm not sure if Venus will be the next one to come in, but don't worry - it won't be long. I'm glad you liked the Yami part, and the Hotaru part (that was one of my fav's to write).  
  
Ivy Tearen: Yeah, Yami might be a little self depreciating - but I think that considering he's a spirit who's been separated from his other half, and has a lot of holes in his memory, it is possible. I'm glad you think it makes him more human. ^_^  
  
Vittaria: Venus probably won't be the next one to come out - but you won't have to wait to long either. Glad you like the story. ^_^  
  
Oracle of the Stars: My reviewers are so smart! It's like they can read my mind - almost anyways. I'm glad you like what I wrote for Darien too. I personally don't have anything against him, but he just wouldn't fit with my plans for this fic - hence, the events so far. ^_^  
  
Ahknee/Kiteen: Yes, I'm an evil authoress who loves to leave her readers hanging - and proud of it! Mwaahaahaa! Actually, I didn't really mean for there to be a major cliffie there, but it just slipped past my guard. *innocent look* As far as what happens in the show. . . I actually don't know much about the events past this. I've seen these couple of episodes, and then a few way later on, so I wouldn't really expect that it will have everything that occurred in the show. ^_^  
  
Bunnychu: Yes, a little jealousy to spice things up - though wistful envy might be a better way of putting things. Yami can't really hold it against Yugi - but all is not right in Loveland, and there's still more bumps up ahead.  
  
Saris Yui: Yes! The story is alive! Alive I tell you! *insert evil laughter* It will be finished, I promise! ^_^  
  
Angelgirl10: Did I confuse you really? *giggles* Whoops. or maybe not. I'm glad you liked the bit with their names. I was inspired - and that part has a lot of foreshadowing, if you look at it carefully. ^_^  
  
Gema J. Gall: I'm glad you like the angst! As for Rini. I have something special planned for her. She's busy backstage preparing for her part - I hope you'll like what I've done. And, you can have Kaiba. I'm curious to see if you'll be able to 'tame' him though. ^_^ Thanks for reviewing!  
  
moonbeam21: I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for reviewing! ^_^  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
Chapter 14:  
  
The museum was very quiet. Though never a centre for large crowds and excitement, even on most days one could hear the hushed whispers of students, parents, and professors, as they were herded through the long corridors and display rooms on field trips and tours. Now, because of Battle City, most of the population was out on the streets, either to participate, or watch the duels. That meant that the museum was a perfect place to hold a meeting.  
  
The black haired young woman he had been following stopped in front of a display with two carved stone tablets. Ignoring them, Kaiba turned immediately to the one who had released him from the small room (though he would have torn up his Blue Eyes White Dragon cards before telling someone else that), and raised an eyebrow questioningly.  
  
"You said you had some sort of deal for me?" He asked, not wanting to waste any time with pleasantries. Though he was impatient, he outwardly appeared as calm and collected as the girl across from him. Not even the occasional loud eruption of cheers from outside disturbed him.  
  
"It is not surprising that you are impatient," the girl murmured. "Yes, I do have a 'deal' for you, if that is what you wish to call it." Her hand reached up to the base of her throat, where a gold pendant hung. Kaiba's eyes followed the gesture, and narrowed when he saw the sigil of an eye on the ornament. It was very similar to the one that adorned Yugi's puzzle, as well as the one that made up Pegasus' eye.  
  
"I am not a friend of the Puzzle holder, if that was what you were wondering, priest. There are many players in this game, most of whom you have not met. Nor do you have any knowledge of what exactly is at stake." Her eyes gleamed with a dark grey light. "But that is not important. Do you know why Pegasus wanted you under his control?"  
  
Kaiba snorted. "Of course. He wanted control of Kaiba corps. It's marketing of systems for Duel Monsters makes it the perfect company to take over, as his is the company that sells the cards themselves."  
  
"I'm afraid that you've been living with a lack of information, Seto Kaiba. Pegasus' attempt to imprison the souls of you and your brother was exactly that - an attempt on your souls. However, if it had only been a soul that he was after, he would not have gone after someone so troublesome."  
  
"You-" he growled. What did this have to do with a deal? He'd been hoping for an exchange of information. He had more than enough money to buy it off her if that was the case. More talk of souls and mysticism only increased his impatience. If the stupid girl had only wanted to taunt him, he would have been better off back in the room - or walking away and going after that blond freak who had locked him inside in the first place.  
  
"Calm down." She told him, holding up a hand. "I only wish to establish the basis of my reason for talking to you. You see, your soul has more power in it than that of -say- the grandfather of the Game King. Your soul was the original wielder of one of the items, much like the eye Pegasus used, or the Puzzle hanging around the Pharaoh's neck."  
  
Kaiba sneered. "You're insane. I don't know why I even bothered to come here."  
  
Grey light flickered in the young woman's eyes once more. "Perhaps, priest, because you recognized me, though you didn't understand why?" She stroked the pendant hanging around her neck as it lit up with a gentle glow. "I believe that my Tauk can show you." There was a flash of light, and the world melted away like candle wax, into shadows.  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
There was no light at first, save for a dim glow that flickered and grew slowly to cover the stone walls in gold. As the room lit up, he could see that it was torchlight, and the room he was in was either underground, or the stone blocks that made it up were so well sealed as to allow no light inside.  
  
Across from him, a man robed in dark purple pushed his sleeves up to his elbows and sneered. "It's a wonder that you ever managed to reach the position you are in. With the little skill you have at controlling the monsters, you are not fit to be a lowly apprentice, let alone the Pharaoh's High Priest."  
  
He felt himself scowl at the idiot across from him, and ran one finger across the golden cuff etched in runes that graced his wrist. Sahktan was the one unfit for his position. As one of the Pharaoh's five high councillors, he should have been second only to the Pharaoh, and members of the priesthood such as himself. Instead, he played like a child. Any street rat could defeat him.  
  
"If you think, Sahktan, that you have the skill to beat me, then you would be better off as a slave washing his majesty's floor. At least they have the common sense to remember their place." He held one hand out two his side, gesturing for one of the stone tablets to rise up from its place on the ground beside him. "Here is your reward for stupidity. I summon the White Dragon - arise faithful one, and send him to the shadow realm!"  
  
The tablet glowed, and the carved picture of a screaming serpent-like dragon pushed outward from it's stone confinement, the lines turning into fluid white scales and gleaming teeth. Sapphire colored eyes flashed, and with roar of triumph, the monster rushed Sahktan. It's form burst through him, forcing out a smaller misty form that faded away along with the Dragon.  
  
He stroked the golden rod topped with a winged sphere that he had been clutching in his hand the entire time, and laughed.  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
"What the hell was that?" The brunette staggered, throwing a hand out towards the wall to catch his balance. The room felt to bright suddenly, as though he had been sitting in a dark room for hours. Hadn't he? He'd been duelling that fool - and then -  
  
No! He'd been in the museum, listening to the black haired woman talk about magic, and souls, and - the light had reflected off her pendant, giving it an odd glow. He remembered that much. He had been about to tell her to stop wasting his time, when there had been . . . a vision?  
  
"That," the woman began, "Was as real as you and I are. Perhaps more so. It is a wonder, Seto Kaiba, that after all you've witnessed, that you still have trouble believing in the supernatural." She smiled, turning around to gaze consideringly at the stone tablet they were standing in front of. "The legend of the Nameless Pharaoh. . ." she murmured.  
  
Kaiba followed her gaze, his eyes widening as he looked at one of the pictures carved into the stone. "That's - "  
  
One slender finger traced the upside down triangle shape, and the woman laughed quietly. "The Millennium Puzzle? I assure you it is; just as what you saw moments ago was real."  
  
"What is going on, woman?" He glared at her. Whether or not there was something going on that he didn't understand was not the issue. The woman's posturing, and mysterious attitude was getting irritation however. "Let's assume you're telling the truth. What does all of this," he gestured to the stone tablet. "Have to do with me?"  
  
"My name," she began coldly, "Is Isis." She placed a hand on the tablet. "And this has everything to do with you. I may have decided to humour your irritation priest, but now you are nothing more than a boy still in school - you money means nothing to me."  
  
Kaiba growled. "Than I have no more reason to be here." He turned to walk away.  
  
"Not even the power you seek? The power to make your enemies pay for there mistakes, and to become the champion once again?"  
  
He stopped, in the middle of the doorway, processing her words and trying to decide whether they could be true. "Explain."  
  
"My deal for you is simple, priest." From out of nowhere, she drew a card. "I have already proved to you that the power within these cards and this game is very real. Whether you choose to believe it or not is your choice. If, however, you will accept my words, than I will allow you to use this." She held up the card.  
  
"And?"  
  
"It's name, is Obelisk the Tormentor. It is one of three Egyptian God cards - the most powerful in the game, rivalling Exodia. The other two cards are in the possession of a gang of thieves known as 'Ghouls', who have entered the Battle City tournament. I want you to retrieve these cards for me."  
  
Kaiba frowned, considering the offer. The Blue Eyes White Dragon was powerful, but to own a card that on it's own-rivalled Exodia. "How do you know I won't just collect them for myself?"  
  
The woman frowned, but remained composed. "It doesn't matter to me. I can find you if you do such a thing, and while you may have connections to the ancient world, you have know clue of how to access them, so the cards will not give their full power to you. They must be removed from the hands of the Ghouls however. Will you accept my offer?"  
  
He didn't speak as he though of the possibilities. If these cards were as strong as the woman was saying, then they would be useful when he defeated Yugi - as well as completely destroying the blond haired freak who'd locked him up. It wasn't as if he were going out of his way in any case. They were already at Battle City, so it was more a matter of keeping track of the various duels that took place.  
  
"Fine." He ground out. "But I do not need any help or interference from you. I work alone."  
  
~ ~ ~  
  
TBC.  
  
~ ~  
  
Ghost Whisper: Well. There it is! A whole chapter devoted to the *loveable* (muffled snickers) Seto Kaiba! Actually, he is a little cuddly - if you use you're imagination - and I think he was beginning to feel a little neglected.  
  
Anyways, sorry if the chapter was a little late, but like I said, the story should be a little more active from now on - no more seven month waits! ^_^  
  
A late thanks goes out to angelic_faluna, and Gaylin. You guys are great too! Thanks for the reviews! ^_^ 


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